The Puppetmaster
by Copperpelt
Summary: Kiba had his reasons for how he turned out in the end, but not many knew about them. From the moment he came to Earth, to his final breaths, his life was tortured. And even before that. More details inside. ADDITON TO ANTHEM OF THE ANGELS! R&R PLEASE!
1. Saying GoodBye Couldn't Be Harder

**This is an addition to the _Fallen Love Trilogy_. I suggest reading them first to kind of understand this a little bit better. You don't have to, but it's just a suggestion. For those who have read the trilogy, this is the addition that focuses on Kiba and his life from when he became a Messenger angel to the last chapters in _Anthem Of The Angels._ There will be some minor Shun and Alice in this, but it mainly is about Kiba. I hope you all enjoy it though and leave me some reviews on it please to let me know that I'm doing a good job. Well, I've wasted enough of your time here. So, ON TO THE STORY! ^^ ~Copperpelt~**

* * *

><p><em>Kiba<em>

_18 Years Ago_

I stood in front of the temple that the Higher Powers resided in. I was sixteen, and facing the most important day of my life; the day that I become a full Messenger angel and decide whether I want to stay in the Realm or go to Earth. My father came walking up behind me. _Late as usual._

I kept my snide remarks to myself. He asked, "Have you made your choice?" I didn't make eye contact with him when I said, "Yes. Of course. I've been looking forward to this day as long as I can remember. You should know that." I heard him agree and say, "Are you still planning on going to Earth instead of staying here?"

I glanced at him and said, "Yes. Why are you always so against me going to Earth? I thought it was my decision." Every since I told my father that I decided to live out my life as a Messenger angel on Earth, he had been on my case and trying to persuade me not to go. He said, "I respect your choice, Kiba. But I've seen what Earth does to those on it. It changes them."

I rolled my eyes and said, "I'm not going to change, Father." A Holy angel walked past us, and waved. My father was revered in the Realm because he was the top Messenger angel, and I hated him for that only because it meant I had to live up to his image. Anytime I had ever done something wrong, it was always the same thing. _"You're supposed to be more like your father. He'd never mess up. How are you ever going to follow in his steps?"_

I hadn't even noticed that he was talking to me. "Just promise me something, Kiba." I raised and eyebrow and asked, "And what would that be?" He looked at me with the same black eyes that I had and said, "Don't get involved with any humans."

Most angels in the Realm didn't like humans just like they didn't like Fallens, but my father took the lead when it came to the hatred towards the mortals. I never understood why though. All my life, he had told me stories about them. Personally, I had noting against them, but I had to act like I did around my father.

I said flatly, "I won't get near any humans, father. You've taught me better than that." He nodded his head and looked up at the temple and said, "Come. We're going to be late." I nodded my head and followed him up the marble steps and into the temple to see the Higher Powers.

_Kiba_

I had always been drawn to the temple. It seemed like a place even kings would wish to have. I had spent many a days when I was younger, daydreaming about living in the temple and ruling like the Higher Powers. But that's all they were. Were dreams. My destiny was to be a Messenger angel, and nothing more.

But I wouldn't have it any other way. I'd been told many stories about how Messenger angels were called lucky because they got to make choices, and were taught things that other angels couldn't know. _Ever._ My father and I were standing in front of the large twin doors that held the Higher Power's chamber room.

Inside, there would be six of the most powerful angels waiting for me. My nerves started to act up, and I hated to know what my father would think if he saw I was getting nervous. To him, nervousness was probably like weakness, and that was unacceptable. He placed his hand on my shoulder and said, "There's nothing to worry about, Kiba." I nodded my head, and felt strangely calmer.

Footsteps were running up behind us, and I saw my mother waving her hand. I smiled. Out of both of my parents, my mother held a more special place in my heart than my father. I guess you could say I was more bias towards her. She walked up to me and smiled.

"Good luck, Kiba. I know everything will go great." She kissed me on my cheek, and I smiled. When I glanced up at my father, his face was emotionless and set in stone. My mother smiled again and waved good-bye to me while wishing me luck one more time. The twin doors opened up, and revealed the Higher Powers sitting on their thrones. Every one of them looked regal and powerful.

I had never seen them before, and was completely awestruck. My father elbowed me and said under his breath, "Don't gawk at them." I mumbled, "Sorry." _As if you didn't do the same thing when you first met them._ Even though the Higher Powers were getting up in their years, they still looked young.

Soon though, their children would take their thrones and it would keep on going and going. The head of the Higher Powers, stood up from the throne in the middle. Her name was Rose from what I had been told. Her red hair was long, and tied into an elegant pony-tail.

Her emerald green eyes also burst out against the marble behind her. I then looked at my father and saw him kneeling before her, and remembered I should have been doing the same thing. I dropped to my knees and kept my face hidden under my hair. _Idiot. Idiot!_ My face was warm with a blush of embarrassment.

I could have just heard my father yelling at my stupidity. I heard the clicking on heels, and a hand lifted my head up by my chin. I followed the long, slender arm up to Rose's face. She was smiling and said gently, "Stand, young Messenger angel. So I may get a look at you." I nodded my head, and did as she said. In her heels, she was just a bit taller than me. My father remained kneeling.

Rose walked around me, and inspected me. I felt my heart pounding in my chest, and knew they all could probably hear it. She stopped in front of me, and smiled again. Then, walked back up to her throne and sat done. All of her movements were fluid and gentle. You wouldn't have thought that she was one of the angels who had made Lord Michael's descendent Fall. She just looked so incapable of it.

The rest did though. She held out her long arm and motioned for me and said, "Come forward, young Messenger." I stood frozen in place though, and heard my father say, "Go up there." I snapped out of my trance, and walked to the base of the stairs.

What was I supposed to do now? Kneel again? Say something? I started to panic. I hadn't rehearsed this much. Since my father wasn't swearing behind me, I guessed I was doing something right. The Higher Power that was under Rose, stood up. I recognized him as Lance. He had been trained as a warrior before his father died and he took over as Higher Power, so he had the warrior build and looked quit threatening.

His voice boomed against the marble floors and walls. "Kiba, you step forward to us today to become a full Messenger angel and either work in the Realm or on Earth. Is this correct?" I nodded my head and said as confidently as I could, "That is correct, my Lord."

I swallowed the lump in my throat, and tried to stand as straight as I could. This wasn't so much as a show to put on for the Higher Powers, but more for my father. For as long as I could remember, my whole life had been spent around trying to make my father proud. And I had yet to succeed in that. This could have been my last chance before I chose to go to Earth. Lance asked, "And where do you plan to reside at as a Messenger angel? The Realm, or Earth?"

This was the most confident I had been since the morning had began. I said proudly, "Earth." Just the thought of being in a new world and seeing and learning new things everyday, excited me. I had spent too much of my life in the Realm, and knew nothing would change. Lance sat down, and Rose stood. She said softly, "Do you accept the code that all angels live by, and remain faithful to the Realm and its rulers?"

I nodded my head and said, "I do, so help me I have my wings stripped from my back and never return if I do not." Her mouth was set in a fine line as she said, "You have now given us the right to banish you if you ever betray us and our rule. By law, I must ask again if you accept."

I smiled and said, "Again, I accept the rules and stipulations that go along with them." She took her seat, and the Higher Power at the end of the line of thrones stood. I didn't know what place she was in the power chain, but I did know her name was Mia. Her eyes were closed when she said, "By law of the Realm, you have now been decreed as a Messenger angel meant to serve angels who come to you and seek knowledge. You will depart to Earth tomorrow, Kiba."

I smiled and said, "Thank you, my Lords. I will not disappoint you." Rose laughed and stood up and walked down the marble steps and stood in front of me. She said, "We know you won't. You are Aikido's son after all. We all expect to see great things from you just like we have seen from him. You are both dismissed." My father stood and said, "I am grateful you spent your time today to accept my son among the elite. Thank you."

He fisted his hand over his heart and bowed. I followed suit, and followed him out of the chamber room, and the twin doors shut behind us. I waited for my father to say something to me about how I presented myself to the Higher Powers. But he never said anything about it. I felt the weight of disappoint on me, but it slowly faded when I saw my mother running back up to me.

She wrapped her arms around me and hugged me. She said, "I'm so proud of you! I knew that you'd do good, Kiba!" I felt a tear sting my eye, but I quickly batted it away before anyone could see. My father said to her, "Now Rain, give the boy some space. He just had a big experience in there."

My mom glared at him then stuck her tongue out and said, "Oh don't be a killjoy, Aikido. We should celebrate or do something for Kiba. Don't you think?" I chuckled, but stopped when I saw my father didn't seem very amused. I turned to my mother and said gently, "There's no need to do anything special for me."

Even though the extra day was given for celebrations before a Messenger angel left the next day. She asked me, "Are you sure?" I smiled and nodded. She said, "Well, I guess we should just spend our time we have together before Kiba leaves tomorrow."

I waited for my father's answer about that with anticipation. He hadn't spent time with just us in forever. Yeah, he saw us and still lived with us. But he was always away and off somewhere else. Nobody knew where though. So my father spending time with just us would have been enough for me.

He said, "I wish I could, but I have work to do tonight." I didn't say anything. My mother sighed and said, "I understand, Aikido." He nodded his head and walked off to go wherever it was he had to be. My mother said to me, "Don't mind him. You know he wants to be with us." _I doubt it._

_Kiba_

Morning came too quickly for my liking. My father never showed up last night either, and when I looked around the house, he still wasn't back. I sighed and started to gather the few things I wanted to take with me when I left in a couple of hours. My mother was standing in the doorway of my room and smiling.

She said, "You know, I was hoping you'd stay here too so I wouldn't have to see you go." I smiled at her and said, "Aw, Mom. I'll find a way to keep in touch." She wiped away a tear and said, "I know you will. Here, I have something for you." I blinked and said, "You didn't have to get me anything."

She handed me something wrapped in purple silk. I took it and unfolded it, and saw a silver and gold cross on a chain. It wasn't much bigger than one or two inches. She said, "It was your fathers. He never wears it anymore, and I thought it would be something to remind you of us and home."

I smiled, and suddenly started to regret my choice to leave the Realm. _I didn't' think good-bye would be this hard._ I had thought I was ready to leave, and that I wouldn't have any troubles leaving behind my old life. I undid the latch on the chain and clasped it back together around my neck.

I said, "Thank you. I'll never forget you guys. Ever." As much of a bad relationship I had with my father, I would actually miss him too. But nowhere near as much as badly as I would miss my mother. We hugged each other once more, and when I back away I reluctantly said, "I have to get going."

She smiled through the tears in her eyes and said, "We'll miss you. I love you, Kiba. Don't you ever forget that." I chuckled, and realized I had tears in my eyes too.

I said, "I love you too, Mom. And I won't forget that either." We hugged each other once more, and I started to walk from the house. It was time for me to leave. Whether I wanted to or not.

* * *

><p>hola! i has returned once more! kinda a tear jerker at the end, right? XP as you can tell by the little note at the top, it has a little bit to do with Shun and Alice, but more about Kiba and his life up to the final fight. i bet you found some irony in there like the parts where he said he'd remain loyal to the Higher Powers? ^^ oh well. Read, review, and other things! ~Copperpelt~<p> 


	2. Strange Arrival

_Kiba_

I landed in the alley between two buildings so I wouldn't attract attention to myself. It was a dark and tight space, and I knew that people wouldn't be crazy enough to go down it. I tucked my wings back and hid them. Even though people couldn't see angel wings unless via Bond or by the angel's will, I still didn't want to take chances.

Well, almost all angels could will people to see their wings. Fallens were incapable of doing that. I walked to the end of the alley, and peered out around the brick wall and jumped into the crowds of people that were walking along the sidewalk. What I saw was a step up from the dank alley I had just left.

There were many colors; not as many as the Realm has, but a good number of them. Noises also filled the air and I wondered how these people weren't deaf. It was very exhilarating to me though. This was something entirely new to me, and it would be new every day.

While I was looking up and gawking at the buildings, I felt something bump into me and I fell backwards onto the sidewalk. I opened my eyes, and saw somebody on the ground just like I was. It was the person who I just ran into. He opened his eyes, and I saw the color of them; sapphire blue and slitted pupils. _A Fallen._ He rubbed the back of his head with his hand and said, "Sorry about that.

I should have watched where I was going….Hey. Are you the new Messenger angel?" I stood up, and brushed the dirt off of me. "Uh, yeah. How did you know there was going to be a new Messenger here?" He smiled and said, "Rumors spread fast down here. So if you have a secret, you might wanna keep it to yourself."

He then stood up and brushed the dirt off of himself just like I had done. This Fallen wasn't much bigger than me, and looked around the same age. He had long gray hair that came just below his ears, and it seemed feather-light. He straightened his shirt and said, "Name's Masomi. What's yours, stranger?"

I looked at him. "Kiba." Masomi's eyes widened and he ran right up to me and said, "Kiba? As in Aikido's _son_?" I wasn't expecting him to suddenly run right up in my face, so all I could do was nod my head. He backed at and said, "Dude! Your dad's like, a legend! Even the Fallens here know about him!"

_Here we go again._ I was hoping my father's _legacy_ wouldn't follow me on Earth, but I could see now it would tag along no matter where I went. I said flatly, "Yeah. He's something." People just kept walking by us, and acted like we didn't exist. To them, we were just everyday people.

Not a Fallen or Messenger angel. Masomi then said, "Well, Kiba. How about I show ya around Bay City? I know you Messenger angels know everything or whatever, but I also know that y'all don't study maps of Earth cities."

He was right. I knew almost nothing about this city. I said, "I guess I'll take you up on your offer." Masomi gave me a thumbs up and said, "Well, follow me then." He started walking off down the sidewalk, and I followed.

_Kiba_

It was pitch dark now, and Masomi had taken me down almost half of the streets in the city. I wasn't tired, but my legs were on fire. I was too used to flying everywhere instead of walking. Masomi on the other hand, didn't even looked bothered by the walk. He said, "Looks like we'll have to finish up the tour another day. Hey, you're going to need a place to crash for the night."

I rubbed the place above my knee as it tried to start cramping and said, "I suppose so. Do you know any places?" Masomi smiled and said, "I could get you a place almost anywhere in this city, but it might take some time to persuade the owners, so why don't you just crash at my apartment? I have two bedrooms and bathrooms and everything else, and I won't even charge you for rent."

I stood up straight and thought. This looked like it was the best I could do for now. I said, "Sounds good to me. Do we have to walk there?" Masomi laughed and said, "Yeah, but it's not that far. Just on the other side of that building."

He pointed to a tall building at the corner of the sidewalk that was not more than twenty feet from us. We walked the last little bit and rounded the corner. Now I was faced with a large apartment complex. It seemed nice and well-kept enough. Masomi said, "You just gunna stand there or you gunna come in?" I snapped out of my thoughts and followed him into the apartment complex.

My father couldn't get mad at me for staying with a Fallen, could he? At least it wasn't a human, and my stay here would probably be temporary. Masomi said, "My place is on the top floor." I nodded my head and followed him over to an elevator. I didn't like being crammed in that little metal box.

And could feel my wings itching to have me break out. But it didn't take us long to get to the top floor. There was one room on the hall, and I assumed it was Masomi's. I was right when he stuck a key into the doorknob and opened the door. I was surprised to see that the apartment was actually very nice.

One wall was nothing but a large window that looked out over the city. He said, "Welcome to Case de Masomi or something like that." I walked in and gawked at the apartment. It was really nice. I said, "I didn't think Fallens had things like this." Masomi laughed and said, "Hey, anyone can make themselves into something in this town. Not all Fallens live in poverty, most of them do, but not all. I just pulled the lucky straw."

He shut the door behind me and flipped on the rest of the lights. "Go on. Make yourself at home. The room over there is the guest room." I nodded my head and walked inside of the room. It was just as nice as the rest of the apartment. I placed the few things I brought with me on the bed and walked back into the living room.

Masomi was in the kitchen and fixing himself something to eat. He said, "So, what's it like being the son of one of the most powerful angels in the Realm that isn't a Higher Power?" _It sucks. Nobody should ever be put through what I have to go through._ But instead of what my mind spoke, I lied.

"It's certainly something different." Well, halfway lied. Masomi said something and then walked into the living room and plopped down on the couch with a sandwich on a plate. He said, "If you're hungry help yourself to anything in the fridge. Except the marshmallow crème. If you want some of that, you'll have to fight me for it."

I said, "I'm not all that hungry, but thanks anyway." I then sat down in a chair that was across from Masomi. He seemed too nice to have done a crime against the Realm that would have made him Fall. Then again, the Higher Powers would make you Fall if you sneezed. Or at least it seemed like it.

I stood up from the chair and said, "I'm going to turn in early. Thanks for allowing me to stay here." Masomi said, "No prob." I walked back to my room and closed the door behind me and turned on the lamp that was next to the bed. I then made my way over to the windows, and pulled the curtains open and looked out over the city. This was my new life, and I was going to make something of it.

_Kiba_

I was woken up by a loud beeping, and Masomi yelling, "Crap! Crap! Where's the fire extinguisher! Dammit!" I shot out of my bed and ran into the living room.

I saw Masomi freaking out in the kitchen, and a fire was going on the stove. "What did you do!" He pulled things out of the cabinets and said, "I don't know! Help me find the fire extinguisher before the sprinklers come on and soak everything!" I just stood in the living room. "Fire extinguisher?"

Masomi stared at me and said, "Dammit! I forgot you're new here. Ok. Ok. Look for a red thing." I looked around and found a metal, red canister. I asked, "This thing?" Masomi looked over the fire and said, "Yeah! That! Throw it here!" I tossed it to him and when he caught it, water started to come from the ceiling.

Everything was soaked in a matter of minutes. The fire had gotten put out though. Masomi stood in front of the stove, still holding the fire extinguisher. He dropped the metal canister, and I heard it ding against the ground. Masomi then yelled, "Not again!" I looked at him and around the wet room.

"This has happened before?" The sprinklers had stopped shooting water into the room at this point. Masomi said, "Yeah. It happens more than you think." He sighed and continued. "Let's start getting this place dried up." He tossed me several dishcloths, and I watched him starting to mop up the water in the kitchen. I followed suit and started in the living room.

_Kiba_

After hours of mopping up the water, Masomi finally decided that it was pointless to try and get it all cleaned up. He had called somebody to clean up the mess, and said that would wouldn't be able to return to the apartment until later in the night.

So to pass the time, he decided to finish up giving me a tour of the city. Lucky for me, there wasn't that much left to see. Now I had the entire city memorized since Messenger angels had photographic memories. How else would we hold all of the information we absorb?

Masomi said, "Since the sprinklers ruined half of the food in the house, I'm going to have to buy some more. So come on and we'll stop by the grocery store." I nodded my head and walked with him into a large store. Finally, he had gotten everything he needed, and we went up to pay for the food.

There was a young girl behind the register. She had brown hair and eyes, and was obviously human. She handed back some money to Masomi and we left out of the store. He checked the watch on his wrist and said, "I think the professionals I hired should be done by now. Let's head on back and see."

When we got back to the apartment, everything was dry and looked like it had when I first saw it. Masomi smiled and said, "Those guys never cease to amaze me." I didn't question who Masomi hired or what they did. He went and threw the ruined food away, and replaced it with the items we bought. It was safe to say that he really had done this many times.

I saw he was going back over to the stove, and was about to turn it on. I ran over there and stopped him and said, "How about we order something instead of cooking?" I really didn't want to spend another four or five hours wandering the city until the apartment dried again. Masomi shrugged his shoulders and said, "Eh. Ok." I let out a sigh of relief. _Thank heavens._

* * *

><p>lol. a little humor insight or whatever. HAPPY 2012 TOO! who's all ready for the zombies to come? i am! they're in for a big fight if they want my flesh. ^^ thanks to all that have read this so far. i'm not expecting much on this story and all of that, so it's more of just for fun. but it would mean a lot to me if i did get some reviews and such. ^^ -hint hint- well, enjoy your new years! read, review, and other things. ~Copperpelt~<p> 


	3. Setting The Foundation

_Kiba_

Masomi didn't burn the apartment down by the end of the day, and I felt more at ease knowing that he couldn't while I slept. But while I was laying in my bed, I was restless. I didn't know why, but my eyes were wide open and my mind was wide alert. I hadn't been on Earth for more than three days.

Maybe I was eager to start my job as a Messenger angel. My mind drifted back to my mother and father back in the Realm. I wondered what they were up to at the moment, and if they were thinking about me as well. My mother may have been. I wasn't so sure about my father though.

Seemed like the only reason he thought of me was when I skrewed something up and made him look bad. At least, it looked like that to me. Everyone always preached to me that he loved me just as much as my mother did, but I didn't always believe them. A few times, I tricked myself into thinking he did, but my doubt stayed in the back of my mind.

I felt like getting up and walking around, but didn't want to wake Masomi up and let him think I was being nosey. I mean, I had gotten lucky enough to find somebody nice enough to give me a place to stay until I get my feet firmly placed on Earth. I sighed, and my fingers found the gold and silver cross that was still around my neck.

I hadn't taken it off my neck since I had left the Realm. It was a reminder of home, my parents, and who I was. If I lost it, I felt like I might lose myself too. Even though I was just as much myself before my mother had given it to me. Outside my window and down in the streets, there were loud shots and sirens.

I climbed out of my bed and looked down in the streets to see a car fly by that was being pursued by several others with red and blue lights flashing from the roofs. Was this what my father meant by humans had more dark in them than light? But it was just one person that was doing something wrong enough to be chased. _Not all people can be bad, right? There has to be good so evil can coexist._

The cars were out of my sight now, but I could still hear them. I walked back to my bed and sat down in the dark. The only light in the room was from the streetlights below that were filtering in through the window. I gave up and laid down on my side, facing away from the window.

A sigh escaped me. What was wrong with me? Was I homesick? It was to be expected, but I didn't think it would set in that quickly. No, I didn't miss my home that much. The necklace was helping me cope with being away. Then what was it? Boredom? No. With everything going on outside, I wouldn't be bored for a very long time.

The strange feeling in me kept gnawing at me. Taunting for me to know. It then hit me. I was lonely. Yeah, Masomi was decent company, but not the kind I wanted.

I wasn't like that, and even if I was I could have done better than Masomi. _No offense. _I smiled at my own humor. Finding company would have to wait until I was officially set up in the city. _However long that will take._ My eyes shut, and I drifted into a faint sleep.

_Kiba_

I almost woke up on my own account that morning. Instead of the beeping of fire alarms and Masomi cursing as he burned a stove, he was in my room and saying too cheerfully, "Come on! Time to get up! Big day ahead of you!" I yanked the covers over me head and said grumpily, "Why is it a big day? Are you planning on setting something else on fire?"

Masomi let out a _huff_ noise and said, "No. We're going to find you an HQ. Every good Messenger angel has one so people can find them easily. Like stores or whatever." I remember Masomi saying something about how he was a real estate genius and could get you any location you wanted for either free or a cheap price.

Or maybe he said something about being a good con-artist that's good with words. That's how he got the biggest apartment at the top of the complex. He had talked his way into getting it. I said through the covers, "Fine. Give me like thirty or forty minutes to get ready."

I heard Masomi leave the room. I laid in my warm bed for about fifteen minutes before I reluctantly climbed out and changed clothes. I'd have to get something other than the three shirts and two pairs of pants I had. My necklace fell under my shirt, and I pulled it out so it showed.

I sighed, and readied myself to be dragged around the city by Masomi all over again. He locked up the apartment and we took the elevator down. We were now walking down the sidewalks, and Masomi was scouting out any abandoned or available building we went by.

_At least the weather is nice._ It wasn't too cold, and not too warm. Just right in my opinion. It may have been early spring or late fall. I wasn't sure. Masomi was talking to himself. "You need a place that won't attract the human attention, and is around were a lot of angels hang around. Hmm. Where is such a place?" I didn't say anything and pretended to be interested in hunting for buildings.

Nobody but Masomi could get so worked up over something that could be so boring. Masomi then stopped and said, "I've got it! I know just the place!" I stared at him, slightly startled by his sudden outburst. I was now being drug around and down a street that I wasn't too familiar with.

Masomi stopped and pointed down a narrow alley and said, "There it is." I looked down the alley and saw a sturdy looking metal door at the very end. It looked rusted and bolted shut. I asked with not too much confidence, "This is the place?" Masomi was oblivious to how unenthused I was to the place.

There seemed to be no windows. Or anything for that matter. I couldn't even think of what the place would have been used for. Masomi said, "Come on. I used to hang around this place all the time. It's a major hotspot for Fallens and all other kinds of angels." I wasn't so sure if hotspot was the appropriate word since the place looked dead.

I didn't argue with his logic though, and followed him down the narrow alley. When we got up to the steel door, Masomi knocked on it with his knuckles, and a little metal window slid open and revealed a set of eyes that belonged to a Fallen. They were kind of tan in color.

The Fallen behind the door saw Masomi, and his eyes lit up. The door opened and the Fallen said, "Masomi! Long time no see! What have you been up to? And who's the deadweight?" I tensed up when he addressed me as 'deadweight.' Masomi stepped between the two of us and said frantically, "Oh, no no no. This isn't any deadweight this time. This is the new Messenger angel, Kiba. I'm sure you've heard of him or his dad. Haven't you, Landis?"

Landis looked at me, and study my face for a moment before saying, "Nope. Name doesn't ring a bell. So, what are ya here for, Masomi? A drink? Catching up with your old pals?" Masomi scratched the back of his head and laughed nervously. He said, "Actually, I'm here for my friend. Like I said, he's the Messenger angel and needs a place to set up HQ. And I had gotten wind a while back that the old office room in the back was open and up for grabs. Is that still true, or was my leg getting yanked?"

Now I knew why Masomi had brought me here. Even though it looked dead to anyone who didn't know what was inside of it, it was alive and well on the inside. The laughter and music on the inside proved that there was a large crowd inside. Maybe Masomi was onto something here. I could always find another place if this didn't work out, but something told me it would.

Landis said, "Your leg wasn't getting pulled this time, Masomi. The old office is still back there and empty as ever, but it needs some major cosmetic work." Masomi waved a hand nonchalantly, "That ain't a problem for me. Mind me asking how much it's still running?"

Landis smiled and said, "You know, since it's you were talking about, how about we just give it to you and you do whatever you want to with it. No charge. Because odds are it's going to sit back there and become a storage room or a place for, you know, other things."

I had a pretty good idea what he meant, but this was a friend of Masomi's. So I didn't know what to really think. Masomi grinned and said, "You've gotten smart, Landis. You know all too well that I'd get that room anyway. You just saved us both the job of haggling. Thanks." Landis stepped back and opened the door the rest of the way and said, "Anytime, Masomi. Come on in and check it out, and grab a drink if you want."

Masomi thanked him again, and we both walked in. The place was dimly lit, but was large and had a lot of area. It mainly consisted of Fallens. There were so many happy faces, and everyone seemed to be having a good time. _Hard to believe that they all Fell._ If I hadn't known any better, I would have thought I was back at the Realm and watching the Holy angels I knew. That was just how normal looking it was.

I caught sight of Masomi just as he walked into a hallway near the rear of the main room. I chased after him, and left the chatter of the Fallens behind. Down in the hall, was a few doors. Masomi was standing in front of one near the end, and looking it over. There was a lock and latch on it.

He smiled and said, "Not a problem." He lifted his foot and kicked the door. The wood split and the door creaked opened. Masomi shrugged and said, "It needs work anyway." I didn't say anything, and glanced at the busted door as I followed him in. _Tip One: Don't piss Masomi off._ The room was dark and smell of dust and old age. Both Masomi and I were coughing now that the room had been disturbed by the door being busted into.

I said through my hands, "Masomi? Where'd you go?" I couldn't see anything. I heard Masomi say, "Trying to find the damn light switch." I took a step forward, and trip over something and hit the floor. I felt a cloud of dust come up. The lights then flipped on and Masomi said, "And there was light! Hey, what are you doing on the floor?"

I coughed and got back on my feet and brushed off the dust and dirt. I looked around the room and didn't have anything to say about it. The paint on the walls was peeling off, holes were in the walls and roof, spider webs hung around everywhere, old junk and garbage was piled to the ceiling, and I was pretty sure there was something dead in the corner.

Masomi smiled and said, "Landis said there was some cosmetic work needed….He didn't say anything about the whole place needing to be burned and plastic surgery done on it. Ok, so we'll need paint…" Masomi trailed off on his list of things we needed to start to get in order to try and fix this place up.

I found what I tripped over. It was a metal bar that looked like it went to a bed frame. There was also a clean spot from where I landed on the floor and freed the dirt. I looked up at the center of the ceiling and saw a cheap looking light hanging from the sheetrock.

It looked like it was hanging on by just the spider webs. I said, "Masomi, this place is a deathtrap." I turned and saw he was already stripping old wallpaper off.

He said, "Give me some time and I will make this place look brand new." I was skeptical about Masomi's decorating experience, but it was the only option we had. I said under my breath, "Well, I've got to start somewhere."

* * *

><p>alrighty, show of hands. how many recognized the place as the same place in <em>Looking For Angels<em> that Shun took Alice too when Kiba was first introduced? completely different place, wasnt it? It wasn't the hardcore place that our romantic duo went into and would have gotten jumped. main reason, because the Clan Wars didnt exist then. Heck, the Clans themselves didnt exist. i forgot to add in the last chapter's note at the bottom that Shun will be introduced later since about at this time he's still a little kid and probably like in the episode of Bakugan where it shows him and Dan fighting over a toy. ^^ lol. don't you love references? for those reading _Finding Innocence_, it will be up later in the day. maybe within the new few hours. i just need to let my brain rest. well, read, review, and other things. ~Copperpelt~ (Oh! Is anyone else's story and profile stats acting skrewy? and does anyone know when it will be fixed? :/)


	4. Reasons

_Kiba_

When Masomi and I finally dug our ways back out of the office, we were already caked with dirt and dust. I asked, "Are you sure you can clean that place up?" Masomi rolled his eyes and said, "Have some faith in me, Kiba."

I saw he was walking out of the building, and I chased after him. "Where are we going now?" Masomi said to me without turning around, "We're going to run and grab a bite to eat, then go back to the apartment and figure out everything we need for this little fixer-upper job."

My stomach growled at the thought of something to eat, and I didn't argue with his plan. I said, "Sounds legit enough to me." Landis opened the door for us and we walked out and down the alley and back into the street. The sun was at its high point in the sky, and signaled it was around or just past noon.

"Where are we going to eat, Masomi?" He was walking backwards so he could face me and said, "You let me worry about that, pal. I know this great place that doesn't cost nothing. And the waitresses are kinda cute too." I didn't say anything. Masomi turned back around and was walking the right way again.

Now I wasn't worried about him running into somebody. We walked a few blocks more, and stopped at a small restaurant that was between two larger buildings. A little bell chimed above the door, and a guy behind a podium saw us and walked us to our table.

The place seemed clean and nice. A subtle aroma lingered around the entire place, and it kept reminding me how hungry I was. Masomi elbowed me in my ribs and whispered over to me, "Dude, check out our waitress." She was wearing a plain t-shirt and blue jeans with an apron over them. Her auburn hair was tied back into a loose ponytail. She walked up to our table and smiled.

" Hi. My name's Charity. I'll be your waitress today. What would you two like?" Masomi said quickly, "Two house specials of course." She smiled, then scribbled something down on her little notepad and walked off to another table. I watched as she vanished into the back somewhere.

Masomi was grinning slyly at me and said devilishly, "You like here." I felt my face warm up and said, "No I don't. I'll admit she's attractive, but I don't like her." _I can't like her._ Charity soon came back with two plates with soup and sandwiches. Masomi suddenly blurted out, "Miss, I thought you might want to know that my friend-"

I thought quickly and slammed my foot down on the top of his under the table. "Ow! Dammit!" His leg came up and hit the table and caused the plates and silverware to clatter against each other. She was staring at him with surprise on her face and asked, "Um. Are you alright?"

I could tell she wasn't sure what to think since she didn't know why Masomi did the actions he did. I said, "Oh he's fine." She nodded her head slowly and walked off. Masomi hissed at me, "Dude! What was that! I was trying to set you up with her!" I reluctantly said back, "Don't. Just don't."

He looked at me and seemed to be confused. "Why not?" I stared down at the table and said, "It's kind of complicated." Masomi sighed and took a spoonful of soup and ate it. "Fine." He sounded like a little kid that had to put back a toy that he wanted.

We finished our food not long after, and Charity came walking back to our table with a check and said, "Just take that up to the counter and you can pay. Please come back soon." Masomi swiped up the check and looked at it before saying, "We will. Thank you for the service."

She smiled, then glanced at me. I tried to act like I hadn't noticed, but my face had gotten a rush of heat on it that I couldn't hide. I saw her smile at me before walking off into the back of the restaurant. Masomi sighed and said, "You should have let me set you up with her." I rolled my eyes and walked with him to the counter to pay for the check. _I wish it were that simple._

_Kiba_

We didn't get back to the apartment till late because Masomi decided he wanted to go and stake out abandoned buildings. He was calling them my 'fallbacks' in case the office didn't work out. It was pitch dark outside when we walked back into the apartment.

I went ahead and walked into my room and laid down on my bed. My body bounced when I landed on the mattress, and soon it settled and was still unless I moved. My eyes started to grow heavy, and I dozed off, but woke up what seemed like every ten minutes.

Each time was after a dream with that waitress in it. I had to find a way to get her out of my mind. I wasn't supposed to like humans, much less have these kind of feelings for one. _My father would have my head if he knew I liked a human._ I cringed at the thought of all the words he'd have waiting for me.

I sighed. There was no way that I could have any contact with that girl. I needed to let these feelings die away before they grew and ended up getting me in trouble. I heard music playing in the room next to me that belonged to Masomi.

There was also the sound of something falling and hitting the floor, and the faint sound of Masomi swearing. I raised my voice to just under a yell and said, "Turn that down! I'm trying to sleep!" He yelled back and said, "And I'm trying to listen to music! Sleep another time."

I rolled my eyes and grabbed my pillow and put it on my face. All I could see was darkness, and there was now the muffled sound of Masomi next door to me. I took the pillow off of my face so I could take in fresh air. It was now quiet, and I assumed Masomi finally shut up.

I let out a sigh, and felt that I was starting to get a headache. Too much was running through my mind, and Masomi's loudness hadn't helped me any. I put the pillow back under my head and rolled onto my side so I could look back out of the window.

There was a full moon out, and a few clouds scattered themselves around it and made it look eerie. Masomi couldn't see any of this like I could. No Fallen could. I couldn't imagine not being able to see something as mesmerizing as the moon and stars. I wondered if my mother was looking up at the moon as well. I smiled. _I'm doing fine, Mom._

_Kiba_

Finally, I had gotten a full night's rest and was able to wake up on my own without Masomi being my alarm clock. The apartment was deathly quiet, and that raised a red flag for me. Whenever Masomi was around, quiet wasn't existent. I stuck my head out of my room, and looked around. He wasn't anywhere in the main parts of the apartment. _Maybe he's still asleep._

I stepped out of my room, and saw the door to his room was wide open and revealed that it was empty. Something white caught my eye. There was a piece of paper taped to the fridge. I tore it off and read it. _Left out early. Meet me at the office later._

I raised an eyebrow and placed the note on the counter and opened the door to the fridge. Cool air swept over my bare feet when it opened, and I scanned the shelves for something to drink. I gave in and pulled out the gallon of orange juice. Behind it, I saw about three jars of marshmallow crème.

I rolled my eyes and left the fridge open as I moved over and grabbed a glass out of the cabinets. I already had everything's location in the apartment memorized. I filled the glass half up, and put the orange juice back up and closed the fridge door. When I finished my juice, I walked back into my room and changed into a new shirt. The cold metal of my cross touched my chest when I took my shirt off.

It reminded me that it was still there. I went into Masomi's room and swiped one of his combs and straightened my hair. Now that I was cleaned up, I left out of the apartment and walked the same path I had yesterday. Landis didn't question me when I knocked on the door, and I walked right in and straight towards the back.

What I saw then, shocked me. The whole office didn't look the same. The old wallpaper and peeling paint was gone and replaced with a dark colored wood siding. There was carpet on the floor that was once concrete, and all of the junk and garbage was gone.

"Masomi? How did you do all of this in such a short time?" I was in awe. This wasn't even the same room. Masomi was up on a ladder and replacing a light fixture. "Few hours? Do you have any clue as to what time it is? It's like, almost two. I was beginning to wonder if you'd ever wake up this morning."

I was surprised at the time. I hadn't even glanced at a clock or anything when I woke up and after I left. "Well, if somebody hadn't kept me awake with their music most of the night, I might have woken up sooner." Masomi held a nail in his mouth and took it out so he could hang the light.

"Don't give me none of that BS. I know that you were thinking about that waitress." He was grinning slyly at me. I rolled my eyes and said, "It would be tragic if that ladder was pushed out from under you." Masomi stared at me, then brushed me off and continued working on the light fixture.

He knew I wasn't going to do anything to him…..Yet. I looked around and asked, "Is there anything I can do?" Masomi thought for a moment and said, "There's supposed to be a shipment of furniture showing up in a little bit. You could wait outside for it or check in a little while to see if it's here."

I raised an eyebrow at him and said, "You ordered furniture?" Masomi nodded his head and said, "Uh, duh. Where are you going to sit and work? The floor and have a little fire going like some Indian or something?" He had a point. "I think I'll wait for it outside."

He nodded and I maneuvered my way through the crowds of Fallens to make my way outside. I leaned against the brick wall and looked around for the shipping truck to show up, but instead I was greeted with something else. Charity was walking my way. _Oh no._ She saw me and smiled. "Hey, aren't you that guy from the restaurant the other day? The one who had the weird friend?"

I laughed to myself. It was nice to know that I wasn't the only one who found Masomi a little off his rocker. "Uh, yeah. That was me." I shouldn't have been talking with her. I should have just turned around and walked back down the alley and have Landis let me in, or just ignored her and let her keep going on her way.

But I stood there instead and started up a conversation with her. In the sunlight, her auburn hair was brighter. She looked around and asked, "What are you doing just standing around here?" My mouth felt dry when I said, "Waiting on a shipping truck of furniture."

She looked at me with a quizzical look. "Furniture? Now what would you be doing with furniture?" I stuffed my hands into my jeans pockets and said, "Masomi's doing some remodeling on an old room not far from here. He sent me to keep a eye out for the truck and let him know when it gets here." I hadn't ever felt so awkward in my life.

This girl was bringing out a different side of me that I wasn't used to. I then thought about how my father said that Earth can change people. Was this part of this kind of change? Before I knew it, she was talking again.

"Well that's nice that you're helping out your friend. Hey, I just got off of work early, and was going to waste some time at the mall. Do you, wanna come along? After the truck gets here of course if that would help. I wouldn't want you to get in trouble with your friend."

I saw she was feeling just as awkward as I did. I was about to open my mouth to talk, but was stopped by a voice. My father's. _Don't get involved with humans, Kiba._ I was then shook back to my senses. I said in a quickly and softly, "I'd love to, but I can't."

I saw there was disappointment in her eyes. She said flatly, "Oh. Alright then. It was nice seeing you again, um. I didn't catch your name." She wanted my name? No harm could come from telling her it, right? And odds were that I wouldn't see her again, as long as I had something to do.

I couldn't see her again. These feelings had to stop, and soon. "Kiba." She nodded her head and said, "Well, it was nice talking with you, Kiba."

I didn't meet her gaze, and heard her walking on down the sidewalk. I sighed, and felt like going back to the apartment and holing myself up in my room.

I was tired now. I wanted to know her, but I wanted to make my father proud more. _Maybe one day._ I hadn't even noticed that the shipping truck was parked right in front of me.

* * *

><p><strong>there's some goodies on my profile for my loyal readers of my trilogy<strong>. ^^ i spent some time last night doing Google searches and **found random anime pictures of people that reminded me of the characters in the trilogy and addition. **(Just in my opinion though, so i'm not saying that's what they really look like) if you **go onto my profile, look up my Deviantart profile. There is the link and directions on where to go to see the pictures.** just go to my Browse Galleries and click the folder to the left. each photo has descriptions about the character and a mini story with them. **WARNING: There are a few spoiler alerts concerning Damien's, Rain's, May's, Aikido, and Kiba's pictures. so if you don't really wanna spoil this story all that much, don't read the descriptions**. You have been warned. ^^ I don't have a pic up for Chairty yet. o.o i might find one later. all of the art and pictures belong to rightful owners and blah blah blah. **i don't think i'm going to upload **_**Finding Innocence** _today. maybe tomorrow or later tonight if i have time. (which i may not) well, read, review, and other things. ~Copperpelt~


	5. It All Starts Now

_Kiba_

I was snapped out of my thoughts by the sound of the loading ramp from the shipping truck hitting on the asphalt street. A guy walked up to me holding a clipboard and asked, "You Masomi?" I was about to answer when Masomi walked out from the alley and said, "That would be me."

The guy handed the clipboard over to Masomi and said, "Sign here, please." Masomi nodded his head and scribbled his name on the piece of paper and handed the clipboard back. He added in, "Just take everything down there. The guy behind the door should let you in and take you to a room in the back." The shipping guy nodded his head and yelled the orders to the others that were in the truck. Soon, there was a moving team going back and forth with furniture.

Masomi looked at me and said, "You alright? You look like you're about to geek out." I wasn't about to tell Masomi why I was acting like I was. I could already hear what he'd have to say if I did tell him. "I'm fine. Might be just a little hungry though. I didn't eat anything when I woke up." He nodded and one of the movers almost dropped a desk. Masomi snapped at them, "Hey! Be careful with that!"

The flinched when he yelled at them, and they hurried down the alley and through the steel door. I asked, "Should they know where this place is?" Masomi waved his hand nonchalantly and said, "I'll get somebody to take care of that. There's tons of Fallens in there that can wipe people's memories without causing pain. I'll just get one of them to work their magic and everything will be good."

He then added, "I better head back inside and tell them where to put everything, or else there's going to be a jumbled mess of furniture." I followed him down the alley, and he turned around and I bumped into him. "You ain't going to follow me into that office and spoil the surprise of my talents. Uh-huh. You can stay in the main part of the club. I'll let you know when I'm done."

I blinked in surprise, and went ahead and walked through the metal door behind Masomi. Landis closed the door behind me, and I heard him click a lock. Masomi had already vanished into the back, and I was left in the club or whatever you wanted to call it. I found a couch towards the back and out of sight, and walked over to it and sat down. I looked around and observed the faces I saw.

There were so many stories behind all of them. Stories that I wasn't told when I was training to be a Messenger angel. I was only educated on the history of the Realm, and the basics. They don't teach you every Fallen's personal story. A few glances were being snuck at me, and followed by whispers.

I felt out of place all of a sudden, and wanted to leave and go back outside. It would take me a while to get used to my new life. I leaned back further into the couch and sighed. Masomi then walked out from the back, and scanned the room before his eyes fell on me.

He started to walk towards me, and when he was close enough he said, "This is going to take me a little longer than I expected. You can go on back to the apartment or somewhere else if you don't want to hang around here." I stood up from the couch and said, "I'll head on back to the apartment. It was starting to get a little weird in here for me."

I walked past Masomi, and Landis saw me coming and opened the metal door. It had started to get dark outside in a short time. I left out of the alley and walked down the sidewalk back to the apartment. To just waste some time, I had stopped in front of a few windows in front of stores and looked inside.

While I was staring into a clothing store, something rammed into my side and caused me to stumble back. I almost fell to the ground, but caught myself. I looked up to see what hit me, and saw a scrawny teen on the ground. He looked no older than fourteen.

Maybe fifteen at the most. He looked back down the street, and I saw five other guys running in our directions. I put two and two together and figured the kid was being chased. I grabbed his shirt collar and pulled him into the nearest store that I could find.

I peered out of the window. The guys that were chasing him, ran right past the store we were in and vanished around the street corner. The kid was bent over panting. His shaggy brown hair fell over his face, and I wasn't able to see it until he stood up straight. When he did, I saw the tell tale sign of him being a Fallen; the slitted eyes. "Thanks for helping me out back there."

He was still trying to get his breathing back. The Fallen didn't look very strong or fit, and I wondered why he bothered to get into trouble with five people that were bigger and stronger than him.

I asked, "What was that all about?" He straightened out his messed up hair in a mirror and said, "I accidentally hit on one of their girlfriends. Hey, it wasn't my fault. I didn't know they were taken." He held out his hand and said, "I might as well tell you who I am since you helped me. I'm Tristan."

I observed his hand before taking it. I said back, "Kiba." Tristan looked at me for a second and said, "Are you a Messenger angel? Cause you sure don't look like a Fallen." I was surprised he had picked something like that up. "Yeah. How did you know?"

He told me, "You're eyes. I know we Fallens have some crazy colors out there, but none of us have solid black. I think that's only a Messenger thing, right?" I nodded my head. Only Messenger angels had black eyes. Some of them didn't like their eye color.

They'd say that it made them look like they had no personality. I liked it though, and thought it was unique even though all Messenger angels had the same colored eyes. Tristan popped his head out of the door and looked around. "I think those boneheads are gone now. I better get going before they come back this way. Thanks for the save."

I nodded my head and he darted out of the door and down the street. I could see he had a weak mind, and not a very strong will. He'd have to be careful or he'd easily lose himself. I noticed a lady behind the counter was staring at me, and I remembered that I had just ran into her store. I quickly ran outside and got of sight from her before she decided to call the cops.

I was in the main part of the apartment complex, but instead of going upstairs, I walked right through the back door and into the courtyard. I had noticed it one day when I looked out of one of the windows in Masomi's apartment. There was a fountain in the middle, and trees in four different quadrants of grass. Concrete and wooden benches were placed out.

It was as peaceful as it looked. I wasn't the only one out there at dusk. There was a guy near the back playing on a guitar. Or more like learning it. I cringed whenever he butchered a note or chord. Lucky for me though, he left shortly after I showed up. When I looked up, I could see the apartment that was Masomi's above me.

I hadn't realized I left the lights on. Like it would have mattered if I did or not, since Masomi didn't pay for electricity. He had talked his way out of that. The only sounds around me were the chirps and buzzes of bugs that would come out at night, and the sound of water pouring into the basin of the fountain.

Stars started to pop up in the darkening sky, and the last little bit of the moon also started to show. The Earth was absolutely beautiful, and I couldn't understand why my father was so against me coming here. The sky was just now pitch black, and I was still all alone in the courtyard.

I could feel my wings aching to let loose into the dark night and its cool air. I hadn't flown since I arrived, and I was beginning to go through withdrawal from it. I needed to taste the air again, or else I'd lose my mind.

All angels would if they had the ability to fly ripped away from them. It was in our blood; Fallen, Messenger, Holy, and even Half-breed. We were all meant to fly. I unfolded my wings and allowed the breeze to go through the dark gray feathers before taking off into the sky.

_Kiba_

The city had quieted down when I landed back in the courtyard. I felt renewed and re-energized. _I needed that._ I had forgotten all about Masomi, and even Charity. Maybe that was why my mind felt much lighter. I didn't have to weight of my new life on me at the moment.

I was sure it would all return, but before it did I was going to enjoy the free feeling I had. I walked back inside the apartment complex before anyone saw me standing in the courtyard at a late hour in the night. A smile was plastered on my face. Flying was like a high for me, and I wasn't the only one of course. For a lot of angels, it was an addiction. But why fight what's your birthright and in your blood?

I found the spare key on top of the doorframe, and unlocked the door. I walked past the phone, which was what people used to talk with each other apparently, and saw a light blinking. I looked at it and saw written in red, _"36 Missed Calls."_ I immediately thought, _Masomi._ I hit the callback button and then the speakerphone option. I heard the purr of the ring, and Masomi quickly picked up.

"Where have you been! I've tried calling like 40 times!" I said in a matter of fact tone, "36." Masomi growled, and I smiled, feeling proud that I outwitted him. "Whatever. Where have you been though? I thought you went back to the apartment." I leaned against the wall, and stared at the phone. I found it weird that I was talking to a machine, but at the same time I was talking with Masomi.

I said, "I got a little sidetracked and then went on a little fly around the city." I could mentally picture Masomi rolling his eyes. He said, "I hope nobody saw you." This time, I did roll my eyes. "If somebody saw me, don't you think it'd be all over the news and the whole city would be insane?"

Masomi quickly added in, "This city _is_ insane, but you have a point. Anywaaaaaaay, I finished up the office! It looks amazing! You have to get back down here and check it out. I swear, I have outdone my ingenious genius." It sounded like Masomi was over exaggerating things to me.

"Can't I see it tomorrow?" Masomi quickly snapped into the phone, "No! Then the element of the surprise wouldn't be the same if you waited on it!" I hurried to shut him up and said, "Ok! Ok! I'll be there in a few minutes! Chill." Masomi had hung up, and the droning sound of the dead line filled the room. I ended my part of the call, and walked out of the apartment that I had just walked back in.

I had to admit, I was actually curious to what Masomi had done with that piece of crap office. It had looked nice before the furniture, and it had to look even nicer now. Landis let me in, no questions asked, and I walked straight towards the back. Masomi was standing outside of the office, the door was closed behind him.

He saw me and said, "Bout time. Ready for the unraveling?" I said, "Ready as I'll ever be." Masomi opened the door and we both stepped inside. The lights were off, and I couldn't see or make anything out about it. The lights then flipped on, and I was taken aback.

When my eyes adjusted, it was like I was looking at an entirely different room. The wood siding on the walls had been lacquered over, and a chandelier was hanging from the ceiling. The furniture matched the walls and floor to a tenth.

Masomi said, "Go on. Take a seat at you desk, boss." I rolled my eyes and pulled the black office chair out from under the wooden desk, and sat down. The desk looked expensive, but seemed to tie everything together. Masomi asked, "So? How is everything? If you don't like something, I can get it swapped out for no cost."

I kept looking over the room, and started to like it more and more. "It's amazing, Masomi. You really turned this place around." Masomi beamed with pride and said confidently, "Well, I thought this seemed like your style. And it also will make people take you seriously. They'll be like, 'Oh, he's serious. Look at his nice workplace.' And all of that stuff."

I laughed and said, "It's a good thing I ran into you, isn't it?" Masomi did a quick nod. I stretched my hands out across the smooth wood surface of the desk, and felt in power and in charge. Now, was the real start of my new life.

* * *

><p>annnnnnnnnd enter Tristan! little fact for ya, Tristan is about 14 here, and then you add in that it is 18 years ago, that would make him like, 32. which is about how old he was in <em>Looking For Angels<em>. i dropped in a little hints about him in there, like how Kiba saw he was weak willed. there's about to be a jump in the number of years in the next chapter. but this is where everything starts picking up speed. if you havent looked at the look-a-like pictures yet, then go to my profile and click my Deviantart profile link. THERE WILL BE NO UPLOADS THURSDAY, FRIDAY, OR SATURDAY (possibly) there may be one later on during the day. not sure. :/ depends on how tired i am. well, read, review, and other things. ~Copperpelt~


	6. On Down The Road

_Kiba_

_4 Years Later…_

It was hard for me to believe that four years of me being on Earth had already gone by. During that time, I had finally gotten my roots firmly placed on the ground, and made a name for myself. There wasn't anyone in the city, or outside of it that didn't already know who I was.

Already, I was at the top of the food chain, and a major influence to those around me. It was also the four year anniversary of when I finally became a Messenger angel and left the Realm and my family. I hadn't heard anything from them personally, but had heard that my father still hadn't changed much. In other words, he was still working and barely around back at the home. I felt sorry for my mother, having to carry herself without him.

But she had been doing it for years, and it was safe to say that nothing would bring her down. I was kicked back in my office, and enjoying the peace and quiet for the time being. The office was the base of my operations, and I could thank Masomi for that.

Masomi was the first Fallen I had seen in the city, and one of my first friends. When you're a Messenger angel, you're mainly studying for the day when you turn sixteen and made your choice. So, I didn't have time to make friends. I had no clue where Masomi was at that moment.

I pushed back in my office chair, and walk out of my office. The office was located in the back of a popular gathering place for Fallens and every other kind of angel in the city. I walked through the talking angels, and acknowledged those who said something to me.

I was now faced with the steel door that led to outside, and an entirely different world. Landis, the one who manned it, saw me and said, "Where are you heading out today, Kiba?" I smiled and said, "Just going to get some fresh air. Being cooped up in that office all day can get to you. If anyone comes looking for me, just tell them I'll be back in a couple of hours."

Landis nodded and opened the door for me. I walked out of the alley and merged in undetected with the crowds of people that were walking along the sidewalks. The sky was a clear blue. No clouds in sight. It would have been perfect flying weather, but I didn't want to take off into the skies today.

Fallens who had blended in the crowd, waved at me and asked how everything was going as we walked past each other. I was respected in this city, and I liked that. I liked the feeling of approval and acceptance. Two things I could never get from my father. I was making my way towards to the park without even realizing it.

I had spent a lot of time there when I wanted to get out and just relax. I passed by a couple sitting on a wooden bench. They were laughing, and looked happy together. My mind floated to an all too familiar girl. Charity was a human. Which meant I shouldn't even think about getting involved with her.

According to my father at least. But anytime I saw or talked to her, these feelings would bubble up inside me and I would get confused. I hadn't talked or seen Charity in over four years. The last time I did see her was when Masomi was working on my office.

That was it. Since then, I had been avoiding her to my best extent. I couldn't get involved with her. No matter what my feelings said. If I ever wanted to live up to the expectorations that were placed on me because of who my father was. I brushed the couple out of my mind, along with the memory of Charity, and kept on walking.

I was now in the main courtyard area, and sat down on the edge of the water fountain and watched people walk by. The sound of the water behind me, calmed and relaxed me. A little kid then ran up in front of me, and looked at me. I stared back at him. He wasn't a normal kid.

His eyes gave that away. But they were neither Fallen or Messenger. _He's a Half-breed._ The kid kept looking at me, and I asked him, "Where's your mom?" The little kid looked over to his right and said, "She's over there. We're going out to eat cause it's my birthday."

I found it weird for this random kid to be talking with me, but I sighed and went along with it until his mother got over to him. "That's cool. How old are you now?" He smiled and said proudly, "Four." I was taken aback. He was born the very day that I became a Messenger angel.

_It's just coincidence._ His mom finally showed up. She looked very business like, and was attractive for a human. She had long, flat black hair that came below her shoulders. The kid's mom said, "Damien, quit bothering this man and talking to strangers."

His mom turned to me and added, "I'm sorry. He's just excited about today. You're like, the eighth person he's done this to already." She looked at me for a long moment. I asked, "Is everything alright?" The woman shook herself back to Earth and said quickly, "You just. Look like somebody I know."

Her kid was trying to get his wrist out of her grip, and when he did, he ran over to another person and said the same thing he said to me. His mom turned around and said, "Damien! Get back here!"

She ran off and I watched them disappear out of the park. After that little encounter, I felt like it was time to head back to my office. _I've had enough surprises today._

_Kiba_

I stuck the key into the door of my office. Landis had tipped me off that a few Fallens had showed up to talk with me, but left when they were told that I wasn't in at the moment. When I opened the door, Masomi was sitting at my desk. I stared at him, and looked at the locked doorknob and back to him.

"How did you get in here?" He rolled his eyes and said, "Hello. I decorated this place. You seriously didn't think I'd get an extra key to it?" I shook my head and closed the door behind me. Since Masomi was in my seat, I sat in one that was against the wall. I asked, "What have you been up to today?"

Masomi was twirling a pen in his fingers. "Oh you know. The usual stuff. Talking with girls and just being me. Nothing all that special. Well, except the being me part. What about you?" I rolled my eyes and answered his question. "It's been a slow day for me, so I went to the park to relax and something weird happened."

Masomi was on the edge of the seat and his eyes were fixed on me. "Do tell." I ignored him practically leaning over the desk and said, "Well, this little Half-breed kid walked up to me and started talking to me." Masomi raised an eyebrow. "A Half-breed? They're aren't that many here. Are you sure that's what talked with you?"

I nodded my head and continued. "He was going on and on about how it was his birthday today." Masomi cut me off to say, "Born on the day you became a Messenger? That's kind of bizarre." I sighed and said, "I was getting to that. Anyway, his mom walked over to us, and when she saw me, she kind of freaked out."

Masomi leaned back in the chair and thought for a moment. "She couldn't have freaked out because you were an angel or whatever. Even if she can't see what you really are, she'd have to know about them since she had a kid with one. Did she say anything?"

I cleared my throat and said, "She apologized for her son bothering me, but after that she said that I looked like somebody she knew. And then she walked off." Masomi scratched his head and asked me, "Have you ever seen this woman before?" I shook my head. "Never."

There was a knock at the door. I said, "Come in." Landis popped his head inside and said, "There are a couple of Fallens here that want to talk with you. Do you want to see them now, or should I tell them that you're not in?" I thought for a moment before saying, "Tell them I'm not in."

Landis nodded his head and left. Masomi was staring at me and said, "You turned down business?" My fingers found the gold and silver cross around my neck, and I was twirling it in between them. "Yeah. I think I'm going to leave early today. I just feel off for some reason."

Masomi put his hands behind his head and said, "You might be experiencing a burn-out. If you are, then a break is just what you need." I stared at him as if I had just been slapped. He asked me, "What?" I said quickly, "I can't be going through a burn-out. My father never did, so that means I shouldn't either."

A burn-out was just when a Messenger angel overworks themselves pretty much, and they're unable to function correctly and give the correct information. If I did have one, then I was sure if my father caught wind of it then I'd never hear the end of it from him.

Even after four years of not seeing him, he was still influencing my life every step of the way. Masomi broke my thoughts when he said, "Chill. I was just saying you _might _be. I wasn't saying that you were. But a short vacation wouldn't kill you, would it?"

I let go of the cross that was still in my hand and said, "I guess not." Masomi smiled and said, "Good. You could chill at the apartment for a couple of days and rest your battery, then come back and resume where you left off." I nodded my head and told him, "Sounds good to me. I suppose now is as good of a time to start than any."

Masomi smiled and said, "There ya go. That's what I like to hear." He walked out from behind my desk and I stood up from the chair I was sitting in. When we walked out, I locked the door back so nobody could get in.

Masomi walked up to Landis and told him, "If anyone comes looking for Kiba for the next few day, tell them he's on vacation." Landis nodded his head and let us out.

_Kiba_

A short walk can take forever with Masomi's short attention span. I could have sworn that a fly paid more attention to what were doing than he could. Masomi stopped about every thirty seconds to look at something. _At this rate we're going to get back to the apartment at dark._

Masomi was looking inside of a store when I saw the mom that was at the park. She was walking along the sidewalk on the other side of the street, and holding the little kid's hand to keep up with him. I leaned over and hit Masomi in the back. He whirled around and snapped, "Ow! What the heck!"

I pointed across the street at the woman and said, "That's the mom I was telling you about earlier." Masomi squinted his eyes to look at her, then said, "She's hot." I gave him a, _"Seriously?"_ look and shook my head.

Masomi then craned his neck and looked at the kid. "Yup. He's a Half-breed alright. I can see it from here. Something isn't quite right about him though. There's something different about him than from other Half-breeds I've seen before."

I hadn't ever seen one up close before, so I wasn't sure on what to look for. And I hadn't learned a lot about Half-breeds in my studies. According to my father, they weren't worth my time to learn about. Masomi said, "I can't figure out what kind of angel he has in him from here. I'd have to get closer."

I stuffed my hands into my pockets and said, "Don't worry about it, Masomi. Let's just get on back to the apartment before it gets too dark to see." Masomi looked at them one last time before turning around and followed me back towards the apartment.

He quietly said to me, "I'm not a hundred percent sure, but from what I could see, I think that Half-breed was part Messenger angel." I looked at him while we both walked and asked him, "Really?" Masomi nodded his head, but didn't say anything else.

* * *

><p>I. AM. BACK! ^^ omg. i just had the most intense 3 days of my life. 0.0 yesterday, my neck was tore up from my neck strap, my lip busted from playing on my bari sax too much, my tounge also split at the tip, my arms were sore from lifting about 40 pounds of instrument all day, and my back is still in one big knot. finally we had out concert today, and now it's all over. i'm so happy for that. and when i got home, i slept for like 4 hours. o.o kiddies, never do clinics with big instruments. you'll pay for it in the long run. but, i loves my bari sax. ^^ lol. if you haven't checked out the look-a-like pics on my deviantart profile then please do when you have the time. the link is on my profile here. ^^ read, review, and other things. ~Copperpelt~<p> 


	7. Rendezvous

_Kiba_

The first day of a break always felt strange to me. Maybe because all of a sudden my daily routine was interrupted. I sighed. But Masomi was making me take it easy a few days, whether I really did want to or not. I was sitting on the couch and flipping through the channels on the TV.

Masomi then walked in the room and asked, "Is this really how you're going to spend your vacation days?" I shrugged my shoulders and turned my attention back to the TV. He then plopped down on a chair that was next to the couch. It screeched back against the floor, and the shrill sound hurt my ears.

I could also see scratches on the floor from previous times that the chair had done that. "You can't just stay cooped up here all day. You gotta get out and have a little fun." I said flatly, "Maybe watching TV is fun for me." Masomi rolled his eyes and said, "Fine. Be that way then."

I thought I picked up a devious tone in his voice. If I had, then it meant Masomi was plotting something that would turn around and bite one of us in the long run. "What are thinking, Masomi?" I was genuinely scared. Nothing was too irrational for the Fallen.

He said nonchalantly, "Oh nothing much. I was just thinking about contacting a few Fallens I haven't seen in a while." He was plotting something, and somehow I knew that I'd be involved with it. Masomi stood up from the chair and said, "Well, I'm going to grab something to eat. You going to tag along or are you going to stay here and waste your vacation?"

I sighed and said in an aggravated tone, "I took this break for two reasons; One, you talked me into it. And two, I needed to relax. I'll waste it however I want to." Masomi rolled his eyes and said, "Whatever." He then walked out of the apartment, and I heard the key stick into the lock on the other side.

I shook my head. Sometimes I just couldn't figure Masomi out. Even after being around him for four years. But he made a valid point about me staying cooped up in the apartment. It'd probably do me some good to get out a little bit anyway, but I wasn't about to let Masomi know he was right about something.

Now that I was thinking about it, I wanted to get out. I glanced up at the wall clock that was next to the TV. Masomi probably wouldn't be back till right at dark if I knew him well enough. I could just go to the park and walk around and be back before he even got back. I walked into my room and slid on a pair of shoes, then walked out of the apartment.

_Kiba_

Minus the threatening storm clouds in the distance, it was a nice day outside. The rain would probably hit the city sometime late in the night or tomorrow. I walked past the place that Masomi and I saw that woman and her kid. I wondered if I'd run into them again today.

If I did, then I would try and see if I could find out something more about them. I knew the kid was a Half-breed, but Masomi believed that he was part Messenger angel. That was what sparked my curiosity. I was nearing the park now. Being a weekday, it was fairly empty when you took out the account of the stay at home moms that were taking their kids out. The rest of the city was at work.

Like I would have been myself. "Kiba?" I turned around and saw a face that I hadn't seen since I left the Realm. "Jacob?" I was surprised to see one of the Holy angels from the Realm, who had been training as a warrior, down here on Earth. I had known Jacob only because our families had known each other and been connected to around the time of the Seven Lords. I looked at him for a moment and saw his eyes. "You Fell?"

He smiled sadly. "Yeah. A few days ago at that." I couldn't believe it. Jacob showed so much potential to be a top warrior for the Realm. I asked, "What happened?" He couldn't have Fallen without a reason. The only case of that was with Isaiah's son, but that was a long and messed up judgment in my opinion.

Jacob said sadly, "I don't really want to talk about it. I pissed off the Realm. Let's just leave it at that." His brown hair had gotten longer since I had last seen him. Which was maybe about a week before I became a Messenger angel. I was sure by now he would have been a full fledged warrior, but it looked like that was taken away from him.

I told him, "I'm sorry. The Higher Powers can be unreasonable. Everyone knows that." Jacob nodded his head and looked at me. "Looks like Earth is treating you well, Kiba." I let out a small smile and said, "Yeah. It's nothing like my father made it out to be…How is he doing anyway?"

My smile had faded. Had my father been talking highly of me since I left? Or was I still barely mentioned? Jacob said, "I'm not sure. I'd heard rumors that he wasn't in the Realm when I Fell. I don't know about now." That sounded like my father.

Always impossible to find. I added in, "What about my mother?" That was who I was genuinely concerned about. Jacob told me, "As far as I know she's been doing fine." I nodded my head and said under my breath, "That's good." I wished that I could see her for myself to make sure what Jacob was telling me was the truth.

Not that I didn't believe him. I just wanted to verify it. Jacob sighed and told me, "Well, I better get going." I hooked my thumbs in my jeans pockets and asked, "Where are you going?" Jacob told me, "I have some older family members a few cities over that Fell a while back. I'm going to stay with them. I've already been through several cities. I was just passing through this one."

I nodded my head. I had known about his family members that Fell a long time ago. Most of them were on his mother's side. I told him, "Alright. Good luck." Jacob thanked me and said, "Same to you." He then walked off and was soon out of my sight.

I seriously doubted I run into him again. This was just a random coincidence. Besides, I was pretty much going to stay in this city, and probably wouldn't ever leave out of it.

This was the place where I was needed, and I couldn't abandon it. I still wondered what Jacob had done to cause himself to Fall. From what I remembered, he was a stickler for the rules. I guessed I'd never know.

_Kiba_

I stayed around the park a few more hours. I never saw that woman and kid again. I wasn't sure why, but they were almost as stuck in my mind as Charity was. There was just something about the way that kid looked, and the way that the woman acted when she saw me.

It just bothered me for some reason. I was sure I had never seen them before yesterday, but the kid looked familiar to me. I stayed around in the park a little bit longer, just to see if I'd run into anyone else. It was pretty much empty now except for the late night joggers.

The day had turned to night also, and I was sure that Masomi was probably already back at the apartment. I was nearing the gate of the park, when I noticed two Fallens were talking to each other. They were about fifty or sixty feet from the gate, and I could only pick up random bits of their conversation. It seemed like casual talk to me, but one word caught me off guard and made me stop in my tracks. _Aikido._

They were talking about my father. I tried to get closer without them knowing, but that would be impossible since they were in the wide open. I strained my hearing, but couldn't make any sense out of the bits and pieces I heard. Reluctantly, I left. Why were they talking about my father?

I knew my father was known from everywhere from the Ream to Earth, but those two Fallens seemed to be using his name more in the form of gossip than what I was used to hearing. If they were just spreading around ridiculous rumors, then so be it. Angels on both Earth and the Realm were smart enough to decipher rumor from truth. Especially when it came to my father.

I wanted to go back to where those two Fallens were talking, and ask them why they were bringing up my father's name. But odds were they were long gone now. It would be pointless for me to walk back to the park when I was already halfway back to the apartment.

Right when I was about a block away, I saw that kid. Damien if I remembered it right. I didn't see his mom anywhere. Odds were he had run off ahead of her, and she was somewhere trying to catch up with him. He saw me and ran up to me. "I remember you from yesterday!"

Now that he was right in front of me, I could be able to see if Masomi was right. I struggled to find any tell tale signs of him having Messenger angel blood. I wished my father had taught me about Half-breeds. The eyes were a mix of angel and human, and I couldn't tell anything from them. They seemed a little bit darker though. The mom then showed up, and quickly scooped the kid up.

She snapped at him, "Quit running off, Damien!" He only laughed. She then saw me and said, "It's you again." I nodded my head. What if she didn't know that she had a child with some kind of angel? I might say something to her that she wasn't really meant to know.

But at the same time I couldn't help but think she did know. She'd have to figure it out at some point either way. The woman then broke my thoughts when said, "I have to get going." She quickly walked off, still holding the kid in her arms so he wouldn't run off. She knew something about me, and it clearly bugged her. I watched her walk down the slightly crowded sidewalk.

I was sure that I'd see her around some more. I turned around and started to walk back towards the apartment. I started to notice that more cars than usual were parked in front of the apartment. Cars that I hadn't seen before. Something was out of whack now.

The closer I got to the apartment, I started to hear music booming. I started to pick up my pace so I could figure out what was going on. I walked in the lobby of the apartment, and saw people I also didn't recognized. The music was also louder. I had no clue what was going on.

I followed the source of the music and when I did the crowds of people got thicker and thicker. Well, I shouldn't say that they were all people. A good majority were Fallens too. I found the music was coming from the pool, and people were gathered around.

Masomi was on the other side and saw me. "Kiba!" He was waving over the crowds and started walking towards me. I looked around the pool area. There were a few people in the pool as well. Masomi finally made his way through the crowd.

He was holding a red plastic cup and said, "I thought you said you were staying at the apartment today." He had a wry smile on his face. I looked around and said in a shocked tone, "Masomi…..What did you do?"

* * *

><p>-screams and yanks hair out- AHHHHHHHHH! I'M PISSED AT THE WRITERS OF MECHTANIUM SURGE! they went and had the bad guy kill Preyas, Elfin, Hydranoid, Gorem, Tigrerra, Ingram, Taylean, AND EVEN SKYRESS! THEY PISSED ME OFF! -runs in circles- i was screaming when that happened! -continues pulling hair out- they crossed the line when they killed Ingram and Skyress though! AHHHHHH! i'll rant forever so read, review, and other things. ~Copperpelt~<p> 


	8. Escape To The Stars

_Kiba_

"Masomi….What is going on here?" I looked at all of the people that were crowded around the apartment complex's pool, and even in the lobby and courtyard. Masomi gave a wry smile and said, "I told you I was going to find a few old friends I hadn't seen in a while."

I didn't think he was serious when he told me that. I asked him, "Is the apartment at least free of people?" Masomi shrugged and I sighed. I couldn't believe this. Masomi had thrown together a party within six hours. He motioned to the red cup in his hand and said, "Come on. Have a drink and a good time. It's not like it'll kill you." I shook my head and told him, "No thanks. I'll pass."

Masomi then had a sly grin on his face that could only mean he had done something else. He said, "I invited somebody that may be of some interest of you." I was worried now. Who had Masomi gotten to come here. Whoever it was, it could only end badly for me.

I just knew it. Somebody had turned the music up and the bass was pounding in my chest. I was sure the people standing next to the speakers had to be deaf. Masomi yelled out over the music to somebody across the crowd. "Over here!" He waved his hand high above his head so the person could see him. I then saw who it was he had invited. Charity. I snapped at him, "Masomi!"

Charity walked up to us with a smile on her face. "Yes, Masomi? Oh. Hi, Kiba. I haven't seen you in a while." I could have killed Masomi for doing this. I had told him and told him again not that I couldn't be around Charity. Apparently my efforts to get that through his head were pointless.

Masomi then said, "How about a little swim?" I shook my head and told him, "I'm not a very big swimmer, so I think I'll just head on back up to the apartment. It was nice seeing you again, Charity." I was about to walk away, but a hand grabbed my arm and I was thrown into the pool.

I found my way to the surface and tried to cough out the water in my lungs. I wiped the water from my eyes and saw Charity looked shocked, while Masomi was laughing and almost unable to breathe. _He's dead._ I had issues keeping myself afloat. I wasn't lying when I said I sucked at swimming.

I made my way to the edge of the pool in front of Masomi and Charity, and held on to the edge. "Masomi! What the hell!" He was still laughing and unable to speak. A slender hand was then held out to me. Charity was smiling and said, "Let me help you out, because I don't think your friend is going to be done laughing anytime soon."

I took her hand and felt a rush flow through me when I did. She helped pull me out of the pool, but I did most of the work of getting myself out. Masomi was starting to calm down. I hissed at him, "You have to sleep sometime, Masomi." He didn't hear me and kept laughing. I rolled my eyes and looked down at myself.

I was drenched. I sighed. Charity said, "Well, there has to be some towels around here somewhere." I stood up, and hated the way my clothes stuck to me. Charity and I left Masomi and looked around for a towel so I could dry off.

She stopped and asked somebody that I knew lived at the apartment complex, and he pointed to a little room on the other side of the pool. He then started to try and flirt with Charity, and I stepped between them. I then wrapped an arm around Charity's shoulder and said to the guy, "Thanks for the help."

We walked off and opened the door to the towel room. Thankfully, it was free of people. I found a towel, and started to dry off my hair. Charity said, "Thanks for making that guy back down. I hate when a guy hits on a girl after he's done the same thing to God knows how many others."

I was sure she would have been mad about that. I was surprised myself that I had gotten that jealous that easily. I was usually never one to get jealous about something like that. I said, "You're welcome." My hair was now somewhat dry, and I draped the towel over my shoulders.

Charity said, "You should probably go up to your apartment and grab a change of clothes." I nodded my head. She then asked, "Do you care if I go up there with you and just stay in the kitchen or something?" I shook my head and told her, "I don't mind." We walked up to the top floor.

The hall was overflowing with people, and Charity and I could barely get through. I wondered if Masomi even knew any of these people. The apartment door was unlocked when I tried the knob. _This can't be good._ I opened the door and was greeted with the apartment crammed with people. Charity and I exchanged looks at each other. I growled and said under my breath, "Masomi is as good as dead tonight."

Charity smiled, and we both fought our way inside. I made my way to my room, and ran off the two or three people who were in it, and locked the door so nobody else could get in while I was changing. I tossed my wet clothes in the corner of my room, and changed into a pair of dry ones.

I also found the comb I swiped from Masomi and straightened my hair that was messed up from being in the pool and from being towel dried as well. Now all I had to do was stay away from Masomi and the pool for the rest of the night and I shouldn't have anymore problems. Well, except for Charity.

I didn't know what I'd do about her. Four years I had succeeded in staying away from her so I wouldn't anger my father by getting involved with her. I left my room and saw Charity leaning against the wall next to the TV. I walked up to her and asked, "Ready to get the hell out of this place?"

She nodded her head and we dug our way through the crowd once again. The hall was nowhere nearly as crowded as before, but there was still a lot of people in the small space. We were now in the main lobby. Charity said, "I don't think there is a quiet spot anywhere in this place."

I agreed with her. I said, "The courtyard might have quieted down some." She shrugged her shoulders and we started to walk in that direction. I was right. There was barely anyone in the courtyard now except for a few people. I said, "Guess they got partied out. Or moved to another location."

Charity shrugged her shoulders again. The music was booming on the other side of the courtyard where the pool was. Charity had taken off one of her shoes and was rubbing her foot. "These heels are killing me." I found a wooden bench and said, "How about we sit down."

She slid her shoe back on and said, "That sounds good to me and my feet." I smiled and we walked over to the wood bench and sat down. The only light we were getting were from the few courtyard lights they had installed a year ago, and a little bit from the moon. It was just a thin, silver curve, and wouldn't be a full moon for about a week. Charity was looking up at the sky too.

"Have you ever just wanted to fly up there and touch the stars?" I looked at her. She had no idea of what I really was, and I had to make sure that it stayed like that. To her right now, I was just another normal, human guy.

I looked back up at the sky and said, "I guess so. I'm sure there's something empowering about it if you could." She stayed fixed on the sky, and when I looked in her eyes I could see the reflection of the stars sparkling in them. "I mean, I think it'd be amazing to fly up there. Without the help of a machine like a plane or helicopter. You must think I'm crazy now, don't you."

She was looking at me, and I looked back. "No. I don't think you're crazy for dreaming and wanting something like that. Everyone has a dream that they think would make them crazy. It's human nature, right?" She smiled and asked me, "Do you have one of those crazy dreams?"

I thought for a moment. The only dream I had was what anyone in my position would want. I told her, "I guess mine is just to know that my father thinks I did something right." Her smile faded. "I don't know who my parents are since I was put up for adoption when I was born."

She was looking down at the ground in front of her. I told her, "I'm sorry." Her smile returned and she looked back at me and said, "It's ok. I actually think it kind of makes me unique. And being unique is something special." The last of the people that were in the courtyard with us started to leave, and it sounded like things were winding down over at the pool.

I added in, "But being unique and special could also cause you problems because others might not understand it." I knew from experience. I was the son of the top Messenger angel, which made me unique. But it was only a pain in my side every step of the way for me.

Charity said, "That's true. I hadn't thought about it that way." There was a short silence before I asked, "Have you ever tried to look for your real parents?" Her eyes went back to the ground in front of her. "A few times, but I couldn't ever find them. I then started to think about what would happen if I found them. I mean, they gave me away after I was born. It's kind of safe to say if they didn't want me then, then what makes me think they want me now?"

I put my hand on her shoulder and made her turn and face me. She seemed surprised. I told her, "If you keep thinking like that then you'll never really know the truth. Maybe you're right and they don't want anything to do with you, or maybe you're wrong. They might want to see you one day. You won't know unless you keep trying."

I took my hand from her shoulder, but she was still looking at me. She smiled and said, "You're not like other guys, are you?" I shrugged and said, "You could say something like that." The music was turned down to where you could barely hear it.

The loud noises of the partiers were almost gone as well. I hadn't even noticed that our hands had slid over each others, or that our lips were touching. It was like a ripple, no, a wave of emotions hit me. I was savoring the kiss, and I didn't even know what might have been going on around me. An image of my father shot through my mind, and I backed out of the kiss.

Charity was blushing, and I was sure that I was too. She said, "I'm sorry." I ran and hand through my hair and said, "No, I should be that one that's sorry. I shouldn't have done that." I wouldn't look at her. A paranoid feeling came over me that my father might have seen what happened.

Charity asked me, "Is everything alright, Kiba?" I heard the concern in her voice, and it hurt me that she was worried about me. I told her, "It's just. My father kind of has a particular kind of girl he wants me to be with." Well, it wasn't entirely a lie. He probably wouldn't care what kind of girl I was with as long as it wasn't a human.

She said, "I guess I don't fall into his category?" I shook my head and told her honestly, "I just can't do this." _No matter how badly I want to._ She nodded her head and stood up from the bench and said, "I have to get going back home anyway. See you around?"

Her voice sounded sad, and slightly hurt. I told her, "Maybe." She walked out of the courtyard and into the main lobby of the apartments. I stayed sitting on the bench and looked at the ground in front of me. _Another dream; To make my father stop ruling my life. But, that's just a dream. Isn't it?_

* * *

><p><em>Chapter Title based off song Escape To The Stars by Cinema Bizarre.<em> beh. school tomorrow for me. none today because it's like a parent teacher thing or whatever. i'm still pissed at that episode of bakugan. grrrr. how dare they do that to Skyress! well, read, review, and other things. ~Copperpelt~


	9. Hatred

_Kiba_

I don't know how long I stayed on that bench out in the courtyard. An hour? Maybe two? I wasn't sure. All I knew was that I had been there a good amount of time. I had been thinking during that time as well. My mind was a jumbled mess. I had kissed Charity, and went against my father's request to not get involved with any kind of human.

But it felt…Right to me. Was something wrong with me because I had feelings for a human when I had been raised to not feel anything for them at all? During my time of thinking, the party Masomi threw together had finally broken apart and the apartment complex was silent again.

I looked up at the sky. A few stray clouds had drifted over the courtyard, and were slowly moving along the black night. I got up from the bench and walked into the main lobby.

A mess littered the lobby, and I felt sorry for the poor person who had to clean it up. I wondered how Masomi hadn't been kicked out of this place. The hallway that led to the apartment was just as littered as the lobby. I hated to know what the apartment looked like.

I stopped at the door, and sighed. What would I say to Masomi? Earlier I had been furious at him for bringing Charity here, and then when I was talking with her I was actually thankful. What was I know? Angry at him again? Maybe. I'd find out when I confronted him about it.

I already knew he was going to ask me what happened with Charity. I opened the door and stepped inside. The lights were slightly dimmed down, and I shut the door back behind me. I then saw Masomi laying on the couch with a girl. I saw clearly in the dim room that she was a Fallen.

Neither one of them seemed to notice me when I walked past them and into my room. I shut the door behind me, and picked up the mess that was left on the floor from the few people who had made their way inside. I walked over to the window in my room, and leaned against the wall and looked out over the city.

I sighed and let my mind drift and think without myself interfering with them. The one time I really needed to speak with Masomi, he had a girl on the couch and was making out with her. I burned with envy. Envy that he could have and be with any girl he wanted, and not have to pay for it in the end. But the odds were that he had one too many drinks, and wouldn't even remember the girl in the morning. _Still….._

My gaze shifted from the city to my reflection in the window. How much had I changed since I left the Realm? All that was visible to me was that my hair had gotten longer. I was sure I had changed on the inside though. That came with age though; growing wiser and learning everyday.

My eyes then moved from my reflection to down in the empty streets. A man was walking down the sidewalk, and he looked familiar. I couldn't see his face, but from the back he looked like my father. If it was him, then why was he here on Earth, a place that he hated with a passion? I didn't want to miss my chance to see if it was him, and I darted from my room and out of the apartment. I heard Masomi say, "Kiba?"

I rolled my eyes. _Now you see me._ I ran out of the apartment, and just did catch a glimpse of his turning a street corner. I didn't want to be noticed, just in case this wasn't my father. I quietly peered around the corner, and tried to see his face. But I still could only see his back.

I growled and felt aggravated with this. I had followed the man for a couple of blocks before he stood on the stairs of another apartment building. It was smaller that the complex I stayed at with Masomi. It also looked like a personal apartment that was separate from the others.

I silently inched closer without being seen, and a light next to the door finally revealed to me his face. It was my father. What was he doing here on Earth? Or more importantly, at this place? He walked into the small apartment, and closed the door behind me. Curiosity overtook me, and I walked up to the apartment and peered through the curtains in a window. I saw that woman who had the Half-breed son.

She was sitting on the couch with her son next to her when my father stepped into my view and placed a kiss on the woman's lips. Without realizing in I snapped, "What!"

They all turned and looked in the direction of the window. I dropped down out of sight, and waited for somebody to step outside and see me. I wanted somebody to do just that so I could see what the hell was going on. Why was he with this woman, who was a _human._

The very thing he hated more than anything. My mind then shot to the kid. Masomi said he was sure that the kid had Messenger angel blood in him. _No. It can't be. My father would never do something like this to my mother._ I raised back up and peered back in the window. I saw he was talking both to the woman and kid, and he was smiling.

He had never looked happy when he was with my mother or me. When he said something to the kid, I saw something that I hadn't ever seen in him; he was proud. How could he be proud of having a Half-breed son when he said they weren't worth wasting time with?

Anger took over me, and I kicked a metal trashcan that was near me. It fell over and trash poured out. This time the door opened, and both the woman and my father stepped out. The surprised look on my father's face only angered me more. I snapped at him, "What the hell are you doing!"

He looked at the woman and she went back inside. My fists were clenched tightly by my sides. That may have been the only thing keeping me from punching something. My father asked me calmly, "What are you doing here, Kiba?" I could have screamed. I snapped at him again, "She's a human! You can't stand them! Why are you with her!"

He only stared at me with the same black eyes that I had. He sighed and told me, "It's a long story, Kiba." I replied coldly, "I have time." There was a lingering silence before he took a deep breath. "Her name's May. I was down on Earth for business when I met her, and things just felt right to me.

Don't get me wrong, I was fighting with myself on my morals and ideals about humans, but I couldn't help myself. There was just something about her." I had never hated somebody any more than I did my own father. I couldn't get out any words, and he continued.

"I would leave the Realm and come to see her. I didn't want to let you or your mother know about this because I was sure you'd both react like this." I said in a very audible tone, "How could you live with yourself?" He sighed. I then started to think about the kid. He turned four the very day I became I Messenger angel.

It then hit me. My father's other son was born on the most important day in my life, and my father had left to come here. All for a human and Half-breed. I felt sick. Did I really mean that little to him? My father sighed again and told me, "I was down here tonight because I resigned as a Messenger angel so I could be with May and Damien.

I told your mother before I left the same thing I've told you right now." I asked him, "Does she know? What you are?" He nodded his head and told me, "She's known for a long time, and accepts it." I couldn't imagine how broken up my mother had to be now. I wanted to go back to the Realm and be with her and comfort her through this.

I needed it just as much as she probably did. I hissed at him with a shaky voice, "You're horrible for this. I can't believe you did this to my Mom. Or me. I thought you cared about us." He held a steady gaze down at me. Tears started to sting my eyes, and I wiped them away with the palms of my hands.

He said, "I did, and I still do." I snapped at him, "Oh save me the bullshit! If you really cared you wouldn't have snuck out to be with a human and had a kid with her!" My words didn't seem to phase him. He took everyone of my words and didn't even flinch. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the kid looking out of the window and at me.

I growled and snapped at my father, "I can't believe you're more proud of _that_! He can never be a Messenger angel and you know it!" My father nodded his head and said, "I know this, Kiba. It's not like my Messenger angel legacy has been stopped. I still have you to carry that on."

I hissed at him, "Right now I wish I had no records of even knowing somebody as low as you!" My hate towards him only grew more and more as he held that expressionless face. I wanted him to suffer just like I was, and how my mother probably was as well. I yelled at him, "All of my life I've tried to do nothing but please you and make you proud and now you have this reject for a son and he's done what I never could! And you know I've been trying to do this since day one!"

Again, I didn't phase him. I asked him coldly, "Did you just want to see me suffer more?" When he didn't answer me, I lost it. I ran at him and tried to land a punch on his face, but he dodged out of the way and he easily threw me to the ground. I landed on my back, and was temporarily stunned. I must have been stupid to have thought that I would have gotten a hit on him.

He looked down at me and said, "Kiba, the past is the past now. What's done is done, and nothing is going to change this. I've made my choice just as you made your choice to be a Messenger angel here." I sat up from the ground and glared at him with my tear stained eyes.

So much hate and embarrassment hadn't ever fueled me this much. I got up from the ground and kept glaring at him. He told me, "I think you should go now, Kiba." I started to walk off, but stopped and turned around to face him. My father was about to walk back into the apartment that had that woman and kid in it. _His_ kid.

What did that make me to him now? I snapped at him and said, "I'm going to get you back one day for what you did to me and mom. I swear." He didn't seem threatened, and he walked back in the apartment. The door then closed behind him.

_Kiba_

I didn't go back to the apartment and Masomi. I just walked on the sidewalks and let my emotions out. Most of them were tears. All of those years had been wasted. I could have stopped trying so hard to get his approval a long time ago. _If only I had known sooner._

That Half-breed kid of his would have a much easier life than I had. He wouldn't have to study until he was sixteen, and make a life changing choice on where he'd go to carry out his Messenger angel duties. He also wouldn't have to work for his, our, father to care about him. By the looks of it, that Half-breed was more loved than me. I kept walking down the empty night streets. I knew what was on this street.

A few stores, old buildings, and Charity's apartment. Masomi had pointed it out a while ago as a means to tease me about her. I stood in front of the brick building, and walked up the stairs where I pushed the little buzzer. I needed somebody other than Masomi. I needed Charity right now.

She was the only one that kind of had the same problem as me. Parent wise of course. She didn't know her real parents since she was adopted, and right then I felt like I didn't know my real father. Never in a million years did I think that something like this would happen.

The door opened, and Charity was standing there in her pajamas. She yawned and rubbed the sleep from her eyes. "Kiba? What time is it?" I blurted out, "Can I come in? I need somebody to talk to right now." She reached over and flipped a light on. "But what about your father?"

I said quickly, "As far as I know he doesn't exist in my life anymore." She pulled down the sleeves of her pajama top and said, "Come on in." I walked in, and heard her shut the door behind me. She said, "What did you want to talk about-" I cut her short by pressing my lips against hers. My father had gone against his own rules. So why should I continue to follow them?

* * *

><p>i couldn't upload a chappie on this yesterday cause i ran out of time. : my other story might be uploaded tonight as well. not sure right this moment. well, read, review, and other things. ~Copperpelt~


	10. Just To Be With You

_Kiba_

I woke up right as it was turning light outside. I was in an apartment. I knew that much. But it wasn't Masomi's. My brain couldn't remember whose place this was, until I felt something next to me. I turned my head over and saw Charity next to me. She was still sleeping soundly. I then remembered what happened last night. I had a confrontation with my father, and I horrible one at that.

I had learned that he had left my mother, fallen in love with a human, had a Half-breed son that he cared me about than me, and had given up his role as Messenger angel so he could be with them. My chest ached with the memory of how my whole life had changed with only a few words. I wasn't prepared or anything when I learned about all of this, and I was knocked off my feet by all of that information.

I rolled over and faced a still sleeping Charity. I felt strange being next to her. Even though my father had broken his own rule about humans, I found it weird to be going against something that I had been told my whole life. I could finally be with Charity if I wanted to though. My father hadn't followed his own rule, and that meant I didn't have to either. I had gone to Charity's apartment last night because I needed to talk with somebody who sort of knew what I was going through.

She had issues with her real parents too, even though she didn't know them. We hadn't done much talking about my father last night though. I lifted my hand and brushed away one of her auburn locks from her face. Charity didn't even stir. She was out cold. I quietly climbed out of the bed and walked into the living room part of the apartment.

It was dead silent in the building, and I could hear everything going on outside; the cars cranking up with people in them to get ready to go to work, kids laughing as they got on school busses. The world was coming alive outside, while my world felt dead and still. I walked around the living room and stopped to look on a shelf. There was a picture of a man and woman, who I assumed were the people who adopted Charity.

They looked like any other typical people to me. Nothing special or unique about them. There were other pictures of Charity and people who I figured were her friends. "Kiba?" I jumped, and turned around to see Charity standing outside of her room. She rubbed her eyes and yawned sleepily.

I smiled. It still felt odd after avoiding her for four years, and suddenly being in her apartment with her. She walked past me and into the kitchen. I followed and watched her start making a pot of coffee. After a while, she poured herself a cup, and brought the rim up near her nose and breathed it in.

A smile went across her face, and she took a small sip. "You want a cup?" I shook my head. I didn't want anything to drink, much less that bitter drink. She shrugged her shoulders and walked into the living room and sat on a couch. She asked me, "You just going to stand there, or are you going to sit and tell me what was up with you last night?"

I suddenly didn't want to tell her what happened with me and my father, but I needed to tell somebody. I walked over and sat next to her on the couch, since there weren't any other seats in the living room except in a far corner. Charity took another sip of her coffee, and then sat the cup down on the table in front of us.

She said, "You were saying something about your father last night. What happened between you two?" She seemed genuinely concerned about me. I started to tell her about the conversation between my father and I. It was hard for me to do, but I got through it.

Charity was holding the half full cup of coffee between her hands, and she was staring into the dark liquid. She said, "Wow. I don't really know what to say about that. It must be hard for you to take all of that in." I nodded my head, and she continued to talk.

"I kind of had something like that happen to me. It was when my adopted parents told me the truth. I didn't want to believe them, and I ran off but later came back to them after thinking for a while. They may have not been my real parents, but they were the ones who raised me. And that's all that counts in the long run. But it was very hard for me to digest that news."

It felt good to know somebody who kind of went through what I was going through myself. Charity finished off the rest of her coffee, and she sat the empty cup on the table in front of us. She asked me, "So, what are you going to do about your father now?"

I leaned back into the couch and sighed. "He's dead to me. As far as I know, he never existed, and I've never seen him." Charity sighed and told me, "You can try and try to convince yourself about that, but he's still going to be your father. Whether you want him to be or not. You don't have to like him or anything, but you can't just erase him from your life. It doesn't work like that sadly."

I sighed. _I wish it did._ Charity looked up at the wall clock and sighed. "I hate that I have to work today. At least I'm getting off early." She stood up from the couch and stretched. She told me, "You can stay here today if you want." She looked at me, and I thanked her for her kindness.

Charity certainly was a good-hearted person. She vanished into her room and came back in a changed set of clothes for her job at a restaurant. Charity repeated herself, "Like I said, you can stay here for however long you want to." I nodded my head, and she left out of the apartment.

How long would it be till she got back? I then remembered Masomi. He'd probably been wondering where I ran off to last night. I searched around the apartment, and found a phone and punched in Masomi's number. It rang three times before he picked up. "Ello? Who's this?"

I straightened a phonebook that was on the table next to the phone and said, "It's Kiba." My voice sounded tired, and almost like it wasn't mine. Masomi then said loudly, "Kiba! Dude, where did you run off to last night! And where the heck are you calling from anyway?"

I yawned and told him, "I'll explain why I ran off later, but right now I'm calling from Charity's apartment." Masomi laughed and said, "Alright, buddy! Bout time you hooked up with her." I rolled my eyes and shook my head. "I haven't hooked up with her. I just needed somebody to talk to last night." I leaned my back against the wall, and looked at the little paintings on the wall.

"You needed somebody to talk to? Why didn't you come to me for a shoulder to lean on?" He was pretending to sound hurt, because I could hear that he was trying not to laugh. I told him, "I didn't go to you because you had some chick on the couch. By the way, that couch better get cleaned." This time Masomi did laugh, and I couldn't help but smile myself.

He said, "Don't worry, I'll spray it down with Lysol if it makes you feel any better. I don't even know where that chick went anyway. When I woke up, she's was gone. Perhaps she was a ghost." I shook my head and told him, "Masomi, even you aren't stupid enough to believe that."

We both laughed again. He then asked me, "So, when ya gunna swing on by back here?" I thought for a moment and said, "I think I'm going to stay here a little bit longer. I might come back tomorrow." Masomi was quiet for a moment before saying, "Whatever floats your boat." We ended the conversation, and I put the phone back on its holder.

_Kiba_

Charity came back into the apartment a little bit after noon. She had a plastic back and held it up. "I brought you something to eat if you want some." I smiled and thanked her. She walked into the kitchen and stuck the food into the fridge so I could eat it whenever I wanted. "So, how was your day around here?" I shrugged my shoulders and told her, "Pretty quiet." She asked me, "Was it boring here? I'm sorry if it was."

Charity sat down next to me on the couch. I told her, "I didn't mind it. I actually like the quiet. It's something I don't get enough of around Masomi." She smiled and said, "Masomi might be kind of weird, but he seems like a good person."

I smiled and said, "You got that part right. You know, if it wasn't for Masomi, I wouldn't have gotten a place to stay…..Or met you." I saw her face flush a little and she said, "I guess I owe Masomi for that then." I felt my own face warm up. Even though accepting these feelings felt strange to me, I wasn't about to try and push them away again.

I had a chance with Charity now, and I wasn't going to pass it up. I wondered if this was how my father felt when he met that human. He had to have felt something like this if it meant staying with her and having a kid. I glanced up at the wall and saw a painting of an angel.

I asked her, "Do you believe in angels?" Charity shrugged her shoulders and told me, "A little bit. I believe that somebody's watching out for everyone. I also just think they're kinda cool, because you know. I have that crazy dream to fly on my own." I smiled, but it slowly faded. What would she think if I told her the truth about what and who I was? Would she accept me like that woman accepted my father?

Or would she run away? I decided that I couldn't take that risk. Not yet. I could finally have her, and I didn't want to lose her by laying my secret on the line. If I had to pretend to be a human around her, then so be it. Maybe one day I'd tell her, but not now. I was going to enjoy being around her for the time being.

Charity snapped me out of my thoughts when she asked me, "Do you believe in angels?" I smiled and said, "Yeah. I do." I lifted my hand up and cupped her cheek in my palm. Last night may have been more about trying to get my father back and proving that I could break his rule too, but I things were different now.

I had put him in my past, and I now had a possible future in front of me. My fingers tingled when they touched her soft face. She leaned forward, and our foreheads touched the others. Her eyes were shut when I lifted her chin up with my fingers, and brought her lips to mine.

My chest fluttered when they touched, and I snaked my arms around her waist and brought her closer to me. I loved being close to her. I had to admit, if I wasn't for my father uprooting the world I knew, I might not have been able to make myself a new one.

* * *

><p>i'm like, jamming out to Disturbed now. Best. Dark. Heavy. Metal. Warped. Band. EVER. lol. XD check out my profile for a poll concerning a new story in the future. read, review, and other things. ~Copperpelt~<p> 


	11. Better Than Before

_Kiba_

I'd woken up the next morning, still at Charity's apartment and in her bed. But she wasn't next to me. Sleep still weighed my eyes down, and I drifted back off into a light slumber. With a little bit more rest on me, I was awake for good now. And Charity was still absent by my side.

I propped myself up on an elbow and looked around the room. What time was it anyway? I looked around for a clock, and found one on the wall. It was a little past ten in the morning. It felt later than that. The door to the room opened up, and Charity walked in. Her eyes showed me she was surprised. "Well look who's finally awake." I smiled when she walked over next to me and sat down on the side of the bed.

I asked her, "How long have you been up?" I took one of her auburn strands of hair and twirled it around my fingers. I loved the silky smooth feel of it. She told me, "I've been up for maybe two hours." I must have woken up right after she got up.

Charity then asked me, "So, when are you going to go back to Masomi's place?" I looked at her and gave her a wry smile. I said sarcastically, "You trying to get rid of me?" She didn't seem to catch my sarcasm because she quickly said, "No I'm not." I laughed and told her, "Calm down. I'm just joking. I had called Masomi yesterday and told him I'd probably be back sometime today."

I was sitting up now since the weight on my elbow was becoming uncomfortable to me. I asked her, "Do you have to work today?" She shook her head no and told me, "I don't work on Saturdays." I didn't think I'd ever understand human work hours.

It was if they couldn't make up their minds about what day they wanted to work, and for how long. Charity looked at me and asked me, "What do you for work anyway?" I stopped myself mentally. I had to be careful of my answer. "Um, I'm kind of in the information giving department." Charity nodded her head and asked, "What kind of information?"

_Why me?_ I hurried myself to think up another answer for her. "Just all kinds of things. No one thing in particular." I hoped she left it there. I was well aware that being around Charity would mean having to be careful about what I said and did. I stayed around her apartment a few more hours before I finally decided that it was time for me to go.

Charity followed me out to the sidewalk, where we just talked a few more minutes. She was a great listener when somebody depended on her. She asked me, "Call me later?" I cupped her cheek in my hand and lightly kissed her lips.

When I parted with them I said, "Of course. That is if Masomi gives me a chance to." She laughed and I smiled. I remembered how I felt after a few days on Earth. I thought that I was getting homesick, but I realized that I was just lonely. That feeling had come and gone occasionally throughout the years, and now it almost felt nonexistent.

I was sure that that feeling wouldn't be back anytime soon. Not as long as I had Charity next to me for company. We said our good-byes to one another. I was walking down the sidewalk, slowly making my way to the apartment I shared with Masomi.

I wasn't in any kind of rush, so I took my time stopping and looking around. There was always something different and new about this world. I was walking past the park and I wished I hadn't gone by slowly. I saw my father's new love, and her kid. She caught a glimpse of me, then turned around and acted like I wasn't there.

I found out why she was acting so strange around me, or more figured out why. That woman knew that I was Aikido's son, and she was told not to tell anyone that she was heavily involved with him and had a kid with him. For her safety at least. My eyes fell on the little Half-breed kid running around on the playground.

Resentment and jealousy bubbled up inside of me. This kid was now the bane of my very existence. He had been the reason that my father left on the most important day of my life, the reason that my father left my mother, and the very reason that my family was torn apart. I turned away from them and kept walking. As far as I was concerned, those people were invisible to me.

My mother had always told me that people who caused you pain and grief aren't worth your time, but if you keep investing your time in them then you deserve the pain and grief they give to you. I wasn't about to allow them to cause me any of that crap.

Pushing them to the back of my mind and locking them away in a box was the best I could do to move on from them. I wondered why my father wasn't with them though. He loved that woman and kid, right? He loved them enough that he gave up his old life for them and to start anew, right?

Then why wasn't he anywhere to be seen? Was he treating them like he had treated my mother and I from day one? If he was, then even they didn't deserve that. No matter how much I disliked them. Maybe he didn't want to be seen with them.

He might not have told anyone else in the Realm other than my mother that he was leaving them for a human and Half-breed kid. My father might have still wanted to hold onto some of his legacy, which always seemed like the most important thing to him.

Even more important than his real family. Still, he may not want to be seen with them, but he still was more connected to these people than he was my mother and I. I reminded myself not to think about the three of them, and to focus on my own priorities at the moment.

I then remembered that I'd have to explain to Masomi what went down the night I ran out of the apartment and why I was over at Charity's. Sadly, that would mean bringing three certain people up in conversation. Maybe pushing them away wouldn't be all that easy like I thought it would have been.

_Kiba_

I tried the doorknob to the apartment, and found it was unlocked again. _For me most likely._ I stepped inside and shut the door behind me. Everything seemed to be the same from when I left it the other night. Well, the mess from Masomi's randomly thrown together party was also gone too.

That was a blessing on its own. I could smell the faint scent of Lysol in the air, and I smiled. Masomi had meant it when he said that he'd disinfect the couch that he and that girl were on. I found Masomi sprawled out on that very couch, asleep with the TV going. I rolled my eyes and walked over to him and shook his shoulder slightly.

"Masomi. Masomi, get your ass up." He moved a little and rolled over on his side and mumbled, "Five more minutes, Bertha." I raised an eyebrow. Bertha? I was in no shape or form a Bertha. I shook him again and spoke a little louder. He still didn't stir. Safe to say at this point that he was out cold.

I looked around and my eyes fell on a pillow that was tossed carelessly on a chair. I picked it up, and then walked back over to Masomi. Holding the pillow over him, I let it go and allowed it to fall right on his face. His body flinched, and then shot up.

He looked around frantically, his hair tussled and messed up from sleep. Masomi then saw me and slowly put two and two together with his groggy mind. He then snapped, "You almost gave me a damn heart attack!" I laughed and told him, "The way you run around all the time it's amazing that you haven't already had one."

Masomi shook his head and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. Through a yawn he asked me, "When did you get here?" I tossed the pillow back on the chair and told him, "A few minutes ago." Masomi stretched his body and let out another yawn. I couldn't help but yawn myself, but I was nowhere near tired.

Yawns could be contagious after all. And just like a light bulb popped on above Masomi, he turned to me and asked, "Ok, why the heck did you run out of here like the place was on fire? Was it cause I had that chick in here? Oh, and I still don't know where she ran off to." I stared at him and asked him, "Were you really that obnoxious to her?"

Masomi laughed sarcastically. "Oh ha-ha. Just get on to the story please, and thank you." I let my light humor escape me as I started to unbox the memory of the three people who I'd sadly have to name again. I sat in the chair with the pillow, but moved it to the floor so I wouldn't have to sit on it.

There was barely any room in the small chair anyway. I started from the very beginning. Well, before I ran off to see if the man I saw was indeed my father. Since I was unable to tell Masomi what happened with me and Charity the night of the party, I decided to let him in on it.

Or else I'd never hear the end of his endless questions about it. He'd end up bugging the hell out of me until I told him. Masomi was leaning forward when he said, "Whoa, you kissed her?" I held up a hand and said, "Can I please finish?" Masomi stuck his tongue out and said, "Fine….Killjoy."

I ignored him and started to tell him about the man I saw out of my window, and how I thought he resembled my father. Masomi nodded and said, "So, that's why you darted out of here like a bat out of hell." I nodded my head. During the story, I had to explain about how I had a not-so good relationship with my father.

Just so Masomi would understand my predicament a little better. I then started to dig into the part about how I followed my father to an apartment, and how everything went downhill from that. I hated re-living that moment for yet another time. I didn't go fully into detail about all of the words that were exchanged between my father and I.

I felt as if those should stay just between the two of us. Masomi didn't really have to entitled right to know about something like that which was personal. Even if I did live under the same roof as him. Personal boundaries still existed of course.

I then told him the part about how I went to Charity's apartment, and even explained to him why. Which he understood after I told him the story about her being adopted and kind of knowing what I was experiencing. I left out a lot of details about what happened after I showed up at her doorstep, but I was sure he figured most of it out.

He pretty much know what happened yesterday since I had called him and let him know where I was at while Charity was at work. Masomi sat there for a moment and said flatly, "Wow. If I were you I would have kicked my dad's ass for doing something like that to me and my mom."

I started at the floor and said, "I tried, but he's much stronger than me. It would have been pointless to try." Masomi shrugged his shoulders and told me, "I guess it was a smart move to go to Charity instead of me while your brain was all scrambled up, because I sure as heck wouldn't have known what to do or say. Plus, I'm sure that chick would have still been here. She would have been a distraction."

I rolled my eyes and asked him, "Do you even remember, or know her name?" Masomi thought for a moment and said, "Uh, it was a name. I know that much." I shook my head. He told me, "Hey, don't get pissy with me. I had perhaps one too many drinks that night, so cut me some slack."

I laughed and told him, "All you are is slack, Masomi." He waved a hand nonchalantly. It felt good to have my world back to a slight state of normalcy, and it even may have been better than before.

* * *

><p>well, don't really have much to say soooooo you know what to do. read, review, and other things. ~Copperpelt~<p> 


	12. Are You Afraid To Know? Because I Am

_Kiba_

_2 Years Later….._

"I'm gone, Landis." The Fallen who guarded the door to the underground hangout where my office was located, nodded his head and allowed me to leave. It was another late night for me, and I had finished up with my last costumer and finally decided that it was time to call it a night.

The night had grown cool with the sun setting and no longer warming it. If I didn't have a light jacket on, I may have been a little chilled, but I was fine for the time being. No moon filled the sky on this night, and the stars were barely visible. Above me, it was just and endless sea of black space.

Whether the stars and moon were out or not, the night sky reminded me of Charity. Only because she told me of her irrational dream that she wanted to fly and touch the stars without the help of some kind of machine. She was a human. Yeah, I know. For the longest time I had preached that I couldn't get involved with one, but I had.

All because of my father. My supposed father who was loyal to his beliefs, had left my mother for a human woman and had an affair with her, along with a child. Who was a Half-breed, and by blood he was also my half-brother. But I didn't consider any of them related to me any longer.

They were dead to me for all the pain that they caused my mother and I. So, since my father had given in to be with a human, I gave in as well and may have never been happier. The only thing that separated this situation from my father and I, was that the woman he was with knew what he was.

Charity didn't have the slightest clue that I wasn't human. Two years, and I hadn't told her. Then again, I had been very careful to keep this secret a secret. At times I wondered how long it took for my father to tell that woman what exactly he was. All I knew was that she accepted him, instead of freaking out like many people would do. But Charity wasn't like most other people.

She was understanding and kindhearted in so many ways. I had yet to see a person she couldn't cheer up with just her smile alone. Maybe she would accept the real me as well. But I wasn't ready to take that gamble. Since we finally were able to be together two years ago, I had never felt any happier.

I hated thinking that I'd throw away all of that by telling her the truth. I'd have to tell her eventually. I couldn't keep it shrouded from her forever. I thought back to when I had gone to her because I had nobody else I could truly reside in about my father. That would understand at least.

She had listened to me with open ears, and that had meant the world to me. I knew my roommate, Masomi, wouldn't have been that attentive or understanding about what was happening to me and my life. Since then, she and I had never been closer, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

I was almost to the apartment that I shared with Masomi, one who I could definitely say was my best friend and a life saver. If it wasn't for him, I wouldn't have had a place to stay when I first came to Earth, an office to work at, or even met Charity.

It might have been a rocky road to get to all of those things, but they paid off in the end. I stopped and stared at the park across the street. That was the first place that I met my father's new love and child. There were a lot of memories of them there, and I had vowed that I wouldn't go back to that park so I wouldn't have to re-live them.

I could still see his Half-breed son running around. He had been four when I first met him, and now he'd be about six. If he were a true Messenger angel, he'd have ten more years before he would be able to step before the Higher Powers and become a full Messenger.

He wouldn't have that privilege like I did. He'd only be able to access what little abilities he might have, and that would be it. I kept on walking. They were nobodies to me now. Insignificant people that I would just pass on the street. My father included.

The streets were quiet, and reminded my that I was still by myself on them. The occasional car zoomed by, and showed me that people were still inhabiting this city. It wasn't just me. I walked by a little shop, and saw a TV was left running. People could be very forgetful, and that kind of humored me.

They were the rulers of this world, and they forgot simple things. But when something bad happens of a high magnitude, they never forget.

Like wars and disease. It seemed like they fed on tragedy. Never remembering the good that happened. Could it be, that not much good occurred? I'm sure there had to be some that happened at one point in time. There was always a new perspective to look from in this world.

_Kiba_

I was back at my office the next day, and just finished up with another one of the basic costumers. I remembered when I first started up, and I was being asked interesting questions so they could test my knowledge, but lately things had been getting…..Boring.

I wanted something interesting to come my way. Instead of Fallens asking me simple and stupid questions that a five year old could tell them. Did they think I was some kind of fool? Or were they just getting stupider by the day? _Perhaps, they are bored like me._

The door to my office flew open, and Masomi came trotting inside. "Wassup, Kiba!" _Here's my change of pace._ I leaned back in my chair and asked him, "What are you doing here this time, Masomi?" He took his usual seat and said, "Oh you know. I was just in the area and all of that jazz."

I stared at him and read his eyes and said, "No. You were bored and thought you'd mess with me." He froze, while I wore a wry smile on my face. I had gotten very well and starting to read people, that it was almost scary. Masomi shivered and said, "Dude, you have to stop doing that whole mind reading stuff. It freaks me out."

I shrugged my shoulders and took a sip of the bottle of water I kept with me. My father had some slight mind reading abilities, but nothing compared to what I had. In the past year, I had started to fine tune it and I could tell you almost anything about that person other than what they were really thinking. It was kind of like mind reading, but more just like reading a person's background.

At least, that was how I looked at it. I had started to wonder what other abilities I had and was yet to discover. The thought of being a stronger Messenger excited me. It would mean that I may be stronger than my father. Before everything fell out between the two of us, I had spent all of my time trying to make him proud.

Now that he had told me the truth, I had spent all of my time trying to best him. Become stronger and more revered than him. My eyes fell on a white paper bag at Masomi's feet. "What's in there?" Masomi looked down, and seemed to suddenly remember. "Oh yeah. I stopped by at the restaurant that Charity works at to get something to eat, and she gave me this to give to you."

He tossed me the bag, and I caught it with ease. I smiled. She was always looking out for me. I glanced inside and saw that it was mostly likely whatever she could gather without getting on bad terms with her boss. Masomi was looking up at the ceiling, and obviously still marveling the work he did on my office.

He asked me, "So, what are you doing after work?" I placed the bag on the floor and said, "Most likely going and spending some time with Charity, then going on back to the apartment as usual." Masomi nodded his head and then asked, "You gunna tell her this time?"

It took me a moment to register what he was saying, and I figured it out. I told him, "Honestly, I don't know. I need to, but I just don't think I can bring myself to take that chance yet." Masomi had been harping on me to tell Charity that I wasn't human, and I knew I had to.

But like I said, I just didn't think I was ready. Masomi told me, "You have to tell her eventually. Just keep thinking about it like this, if she really cares about you then she'll accept you either way; human or Messenger. You're still the same person either way."

It was true. No matter which way you looked at, I was still the same. _I just hope she sees it the same way too._ I hadn't even noticed that the sun was setting. I jumped up and said, "Crap. Masomi, can you lock this place up?" He nodded his head and I ran out of the building and into the streets.

Charity had been off of work for a while now, and was probably wondering where the hell I was. While walking down the sidewalk to her apartment, I kept thinking about whether I should tell her or not. Was I truly ready? Probably.

The real question was if I wanted to risk losing one of the best things that may have happened to me. I walked up the steps to her apartment, and found the spare key under the welcome mat. It seemed like everyone did this, so I didn't understand how it could be safe.

I unlocked the door, and put the spare key back. I walked in the apartment, and could smell the scents of candles that had been burned and air fresheners that had been sprayed. I found Charity sitting on the couch, and reading a book. She glanced up at me and smiled. "There you are. I almost thought you wouldn't show up."

She marked the page she was on and laid the book down and walking over to me. I placed a light and quick kiss on her lips and told her, "I lost track of the time." She waved her hand and told me, "It's no problem. Did Masomi give you that food, or did he eat it?" I smiled and told her, "He got it to me."

She sat down on the couch and said, "Good. You gunna sit or stand?" I smiled and sat next to her on the couch. The picture of an angel was still on the wall above us. _Would you run? Would you hide?_ Those questions always made me wish that I wasn't an angel, and just a human.

People don't run from things like them, only from things that aren't like them. Charity looked at me and asked with a concerned voice, "Kiba, is everything alright? You seem more distant than usual." I looked away from the picture and back to her. I ran my thumb along her jaw and asked her, "Do you still believe in angels?"

* * *

><p>ah, yet another year jump. i only do those since this story is a difficult write for me and all that kind of stuff. it puts fresh ideas in my head as well when i have written myself into a wall. it's kind of like a jump over said wall and stuff like that. sorry for not uploading this one yesterday. i was all Gleeky and stuff. well, read, review, and other things. ~Copperpelt~<p> 


	13. The Blade Of Truth Cuts Deep

_Kiba_

Charity was staring at me as she tried to figure out what my angle was for bringing up the topic of angels again. "In a way. I thought we already discussed this a while back?" I nodded my head quickly and said nervously, "Uh, we did. I was just…..There's something I need to tell you."

She raised an eyebrow at me and titled her head to the side. How in the world did my father do this? "Is there somebody else?" She caught me off guard, and I shook my head. "What? No!" I was sure if Masomi were telling her this, it would go a lot more smooth than this. He just had that kind of luck.

She looked at me with her green and hazel eyes and said, "Then what is it?" I sighed and grabbed her hand and said, "Just follow me." I couldn't tell her being cooped up in that apartment. I didn't want the walls to feel like they were closing in on me.

We had walked all the way to the playground of an elementary school that was near her apartment. We had been there before and looked up at the sky and talked. I sat her down on a metal bench that was painted blue and faded from years of being exposed to the sun and elements.

Normally I would have sat next to her, but was too anxious. I was pacing back and forth, trying to figure out the best way to do this. "Kiba, what's going on with you?" I could see in her eyes that she was concerned and confused. Maybe even slightly aggravated as she tried to find out why I was acting the way I was.

A strange presence made me look to my left. I didn't see anything, but I could feel that somebody was there. I turned my attention back to Charity, and the task at hand. There had to be a million things running through her head.

I couldn't blame her because I had just as many thoughts in mine. "Kiba, is this something about your father again?" I looked at her and shook my head. "No. It's more about me." She leaned forward and asked, "Then tell me what it is." I looked her dead in the eyes and said, "I'm an angel."

_Kiba_

There was a long pause from her, before a smile crossed her face. I was confused. This wasn't the reaction I was planning on. I asked, "What?" Charity stood up and said through her smile, "Kiba, you're sweet and nice, but hardly an angel." Of course.

Why didn't I figure in that she wouldn't believe me? This would be a common reaction for any human. I placed my hands on her shoulder and looked right down at her and gave her the most serious look I could. Her smile faded, and she started to realize that I was serious.

"You're not kidding, are you? You really think you're an angel?" Great. Now she thought I was some kind of delusional person. I sighed and told her, "I don't think, I _am._" Charity nodded her head slowly and said, "Ohhhkay. I'm going back to my apartment now."

She started to walk away, but I grabbed her hand and said, "I can prove it." Yep. She thought I was insane. "You're not going to get on top of the school and try to fly are you? Because I think gravity is going to win." I let out a sigh of aggravation.

"I'm not crazy. I'm telling you the truth." Charity place a hand on her hip and gave me a daring look. "Ok. Show me then." I sighed. I'd have to show her my wings. Unlike Fallens, who couldn't choose to reveal their wings, I could. "Alright, but close your eyes first."

Charity raised an eyebrow and said, "Ok." She shut her eyes, and I placed my lips on hers and folded my wings around her. She was calm when I kissed her, but when she felt the feathers touch her was when she tensed up.

Her eyes flew open and she broke from my wings that were surrounding her. She then slipped back and landed on the ground. "Are you ok?" She couldn't take her eyes from me. Or to be more specific, my wings. "You, you weren't kidding. You're. You're an angel."

She was taking in short breathes, and I could hear her heart racing from where I was standing. Now this was kind of what I expected. This was a natural reaction for people to see something not like them. Something that they didn't believe existed.

I held out my hand to her and said, "Let me help you up." She stared at my hand for a moment, then slapped it out of the way and scrambled up to her feet. She stepped back and ran into the fence that surrounded the playground. "You're not human. You're an angel. Angels don't exist. This is a dream. It has to be." She was still in shock, and it wouldn't be smart to make any sudden movements.

"Charity, calm down. I'm not going to do anything to hurt you. And I thought you said you believed in angels?" She gulped, and was still panting. "I kind of did. I was skeptical, but I didn't think they really did exist." She was still backed up against the fence, even though I was at least ten feet from her.

I took a small step and she snapped at me, "Stay back!" I stopped in my tracks and looked at her. "I'm not going to hurt you. Just let me explain everything." I was trying to stay rational during this, even though Charity wasn't. She shook her head and told me to stay back again.

She kept saying to herself, "This isn't real. This isn't real." I then took another small step towards her, and she darted off. "Charity!" I was about to run after her, when I heard the flapping of wings behind me. I turned around and saw my father standing there.

"I tried to tell you not to get involved with humans." I growled at him. "Shut up! What are you doing here!" He crossed his arms over his chest and said, "Just enjoying the show. I was begging to wonder if you'd ever tell her what you were. Then again, I knew how she'd react."

It was taking every fiber of my being not to punch his face in. I snapped at him, "What is your problem!" I didn't stay around for his answer, and turned and ran in the same direction that Charity had. How long had he been watching me while I was with Charity?

I knew how he knew how Charity would react. He was a top Messenger angel after all. And even though one of my abilities were stronger than his, he still had all kinds of abilities that I didn't. What really peeved me off was that he probably knew that I liked Charity when we had our argument and didn't even bother to warn me what would happen. No. He didn't want to tell me because that would mean that he would be able to watch me flounder.

_Kiba_

I had stopped running, and was now walking down the street back to Charity's apartment. I had to find a way for her to understand all of this. If I did, then maybe there could be a chance. I stopped and saw Charity being back against a wall by three guys.

She then passed out and slid down the brick wall behind her. After all of the events that just happened to her, I was sure that I'd faint too. The guys started to laugh and moved in on her. She was defenseless and at their mercy. I ran up there and did a sweeping kick and knocked all three of the attackers off their feet. I unfolded my wings, and made sure they could see them. One of them yelled, "What the hell!"

They then scrambled to their feet and ran off. I didn't have to worry about them telling anyone about what they saw. Odds were nobody would believe them, just like Charity hadn't believed me. I turned and looked down at Charity, who was still passed out.

I knelt beside her and tried to shake her awake. "Charity. Wake up." She made a noise, but didn't wake up. She was out cold. I sighed and picked her up. For a small girl, she was a lot heavier than she looked. I finally got her back to her apartment and laid her down on the couch since my arms were tired from carrying her.

She didn't even stir when I set her down. I took a chair from the kitchen and sat down in it. How would she be when she woke up? The same as when I told her? More rational and like her old self?

For all I knew, this could be the last time I could talk with her, or see her. After this, she might not want anything to do with me. I shouldn't have waited so long to tell her. Maybe it wouldn't hurt so badly like it did now.

_Kiba_

I sat in that chair all night, and even fell asleep. Which, may have not been a smart move since my back felt like a horse had walked on it. Charity finally started to wake up, and I saw her eyes open up and look around. She saw me and asked, "How'd I get back here? How much of last night was a dream?"

I knew what she was saying. She was hoping to find out that the whole angel thing wasn't real. That she had only dreamed it up. I could play it all off as a dream, but then I'd go back to keeping a large part of my life a secret. I didn't want to do that again. I had to admit, even though I might have been losing her last night, it felt good to tell her the truth.

I told her, "Anything after you passed out was probably a dream." She stared at me and said, "So, you talking to me at the school….Wasn't a dream? You're really an angel?" I nodded my head. Charity sat up on the couch, and looked down at her hands.

I wished I could know what she was thinking. She looked at me, her eyes starting to form tears in them. "Go." I looked at her with a quizzical look. "Go?" She nodded her head and told me, "This. This is way too much for me to take in. I mean, _way_ too much. I'm sorry, but this is crazy."

I hadn't even noticed that tears were in my own eyes. I had known the risks when I decided to tell her the truth, and I had to be ready to take the consequences that came along with it. This could have gone either way, but unfortunately it went the opposite way that I wanted it to.

I stood up and told her, "Don't tell anyone else, about what you found out about me. They probably won't believe you, and might think you're crazy. And I don't want you to have to go through any treatments or something like that."

She nodded her head and I walked out of the apartment. When that door shut behind me, it was just like the floor fell out from under me. There wasn't anything for me to ground myself on. And while I walked back to the apartment I shared with Masomi, it felt like I was drifting past everything and everyone.

I walked in the apartment, and Masomi was reading a magazine. "Hey, Kiba. How'd it go with Charity?" I told him flatly, "It could have gone better." I then walked into my room, and looked out of the window. Being it was still daytime, people were walking back and forth on the sidewalk. _All of them…..Are the same._

* * *

><p>-dramatic music- guess who's turning to the darkside for cookies? -points to Kiba- that guy! lol. read, review, and other things. ~Copperpelt~<p> 


	14. Deadly Unease

_Kiba_

Walking back to the office I worked in, wasn't the easiest thing for me to do. I had to pass by so many people. People who would do that same thing that Charity did if I told them what I really was. Last night still stung me almost as much as when I discovered my father's affair.

Maybe it stung worse because I lost something I cared about, and my own father had been there to gloat about it. I walked down the alley and banged on the metal door with the side of my hand. The little window slid open and revealed Landis's eyes to me. "Ah, Kiba-"

I cut him off and said harshly, "Just let me in." His eyes showed me that he was taken aback by my outburst, but he unlocked the metal door and I brushed past him and walked straight back to my office. _I should have stayed at the apartment._ I slammed the door behind me and fell back into my chair.

I then ran my hands through my hair. An urge to scream flooded over me again just like it had all last night. I fought my way through nonstop questions all day, and had nothing more than the desire to go and twist things up for them. I could give them false information and ruin everything for them.

They would have everything ripped away from them just like I had, and would suffer as well. I smile crossed my lips as I thought about having that kind of control and influence over somebody. _And it would be so easy too._ I heard a familiar voice shouting, and then Masomi came barging into the room.

I gave him a cold stare because he broke my solitude. He said, "Sorry about that. Somebody tried to be an ass back there." I asked coldly, "Why are you here?" Masomi raised an eyebrow at me. "What? I came here because you looked like you wanted to kill yourself last night, and this morning you looked ready to kill whoever said hi to you."

I knew that I hadn't tried to hide my emotions last night, or this morning. And even though Masomi lived in how own little world most of the time, he could easily see when somebody wasn't acting normal. Unless he had a girl over. Then he was much too focused on her.

"What happened last night, Kiba? I'm tired of seeing you go bi-polar." I stood up from my desk, and the chair went back on its wheels when I did. "Nothing that happened last night concerns you, Masomi." He rolled his eyes and said, "Oh save me the crap, Kiba. Something happened last night that's got you more skrewed up than an emotionally challenged girl."

I could sense that he was being truly concerned, but that didn't matter to me. He added in, "Kiba, I'm your friend, and plus I share an apartment with you so I really don't want to see you crying one minute and then punching holes in the wall the next. So just spill it already."

I stared at him, and he held my gaze and threw it right back at me. He wasn't going to back down until I told him what he wanted to know. I walked around my desk and said nonchalantly, "I'm tired of being what everyone wants me to be."

Masomi raised an eyebrow and sighed. "That's not a lie, even I can see that. But it's not the truth either. Just tell me what happened with you and Charity last night or else I'll go and find her myself and ask her." When he brought up her name, I felt a stab in my chest. I snapped at him, "Get out of here. You can go and say to her whatever you want, but I don't want to bring her up in here."

Masomi stared at me and said, "This has gotten you really skrewed up, Kiba." I stayed quiet, but didn't take my glare from him. Masomi threw his hands up and said, "Fine. You want to bitch and moan, then so be it. I try and be the supportive friend, and just get brushed off and told to leave. Alright, I can respect that. I'm gone."

I watched Masomi stomp out, and heard him yell at the same person he yelled at when he came through the building. Had I been harsh? Yeah, probably. But the world was harsh. This whole, low and disgusting world. One that didn't deserve to have people on it that were hateful to one another, who killed each other for their own personal greed.

The Earth was littered with imperfections, and I could smooth them out if I tried. It would just take the right people to manipulate. _Or the right Fallens._ A plan started to unfold before my eyes. Fallens fighting one another without knowing why, and people getting caught up in the crossfire of their wars.

It was just like looking into the future, when I realized that I was in an essence. This was a possible future I was seeing. One that would take place if I started towards my path to purify this world. A smile crossed my face again. The peace of the Fallens would be no more, and so would the so called 'peace' of the humans.

But the future showed me the fight taking place many years away. I didn't want to wait. I wanted it to start happening now. _I have to start somewhere._ I had the ability to do it. To change the face of this world, just by starting with corrupting the information I gave to those who came looking for it. The door opened again, and I expected to see Masomi walking back in.

I turned around, and saw a middle age woman. I could just look at her and she screamed human, but there was something else about her. The way she looked at me. This woman could see me, and I wasn't allowing her. _A Caretaker? Bondage maybe?_ I asked, "How did you get in here?"

She slid her purse down to the groove of her elbow and dug around in it. The woman pulled out a rolled ball of cash and said, "I know I'm not supposed to be in here, but I have to know something." I hadn't taken money from anyone that had come to me.

I was meant to give my information without any consignment. I stared at it for a moment. But I wasn't following conventional methods any longer. I was going by my own so I could rid this world of its filth. Besides, I might be able to turn this world's greed against it. I reached out my hand and took the money. I smiled wryly and said, "What is it that I can do for you?"

The woman pulled her purse back up to her shoulder and said, "I'm with a community of Caretakers in the city. The leader of them to be exact. I'm Bertha." She held out her hand to me. _So I was right about her being able to see me._ I said slyly, "A Caretaker, huh? How interesting. But why come here?"

I was intrigued to what had brought her to me. Caretakers normally only dealt with Fallens. They didn't even bother with Messenger angels. To them, we were well off enough that we didn't need any help. She pulled her hair behind her ear and said, "Me and some of the other Caretakers all seemed to have gotten this ominous feeling last night. As if a dark force just moved into the area. I told them I didn't want to come here, but they didn't give me much choice. They were hoping that you may have known something."

I walked around her, as if she were prey and I was the predator. I could pick her apart with lies all day. _An easy target, just like every human._ I said, "I can't believe that I'm known in the Caretaker community. That's such an honor. You know, I hate to tell you but I don't know anything about this feeling you and the other Caretakers got." _But I do. That feeling you got, was my new world order coming true._

She stared me down when I stopped in front of her. She said, "I don't believe you." I laughed and said, "My dear Bertha, what reason would I have to lie to you? Or anyone for that matter?" She sighed and said, "I apologize. I've never trusted Messenger angels." Just like with Masomi, I could sense her inner thoughts.

She still didn't trust me, and no matter what I'd tell her she wouldn't. Unless it was the truth. I could see now that the Caretakers might be a problem for me in the future. They were selected by previous Higher Powers, and given abilities to help with taking care of the Fallens who resided on Earth.

_I'll have to do something about them. I don't want them standing in my way._ I said, "I'm sorry that I can't tell you anything. Trust me, if the city is threatened by darkness, then I would try and help out all I could." Bertha nodded her head and walked out of the room.

My fake smile that I had been putting on, vanished and turned into a fine line. In order for my new world to take place, I'd need to do something about those Caretakers. They were more in tuned with the balance of things than any kind of angel. If my information was correct, there were at least twenty Caretakers in this city alone, and about thirty left in the rest of the world.

They were the last of the hundreds that had been picked to take care of the Fallens. Old age took most of them of course. It wasn't like the Higher Powers made them immortal. They could still die just as easily as any human on the streets. I'd take care of the Caretakers in this city, and when I started aiming for my goal, I'd take care of the rest of them.

Whenever things would start going more into the dark as my corruption took over, I'd manipulate my pawns and have them cause a little accident for the Caretakers. _Hmm. Pawns. I like that word._ That's what everyone was to me now. Pawns in the game of my new world.

One where I ruled and all of the scum was wiped away from the face of existence. I looked down at the roll of money on the desk. I scooped it up and tossed it aside in on of the drawers in my desk. It would have to do until I found somewhere safer for it.

Nobody would expect that I'd have any just yet. Like I said, Messenger angels don't charge for their service. _Till now._ Word would get around quickly that I was asking for payment, and then I'd change the money's location. Doing this wouldn't stop Fallens from coming to me. I was the only Messenger angel for miles and miles, even into the next city over. _The rules of supply and demand are ever in my favor._

I smiled, liking how my life was taking a seemingly better turn around. I sat down on the edge of my desk, and a glint caught my eye. The gold and silver cross was still around my neck. The very cross that was my father's, and given to me by my mother so I could remember who I was.

A keepsake for me so I wouldn't lose who I was. I grabbed the cross and yanked it off, breaking the chain as I did. Now I was holding it in my hand, and looking at it. This was the first time it had ever left my neck since I came to Earth six years ago. I could see my reflection in the smooth precious metal cross.

I looked older, darker, and broken. Not that I hadn't been told that I looked broken before. Even Masomi had told me that one time, and I was sure that he believed it even more now. I stuffed the broken necklace in my pocket and walked out of my office, then stomped past Landis without a word.

It was night outside already, and I made my way towards the park. I walked to the middle of the bridge that stretched across the lake. It wasn't more than ten feet above the water. Streetlights sparkled orange and yellow on the water's surface. I pulled the necklace out and looked at it.

Voices ran through my head. My mother's; _"Don't ever forget who you are, Kiba."_ My father's; _"Earth changes those who are on it."_ And Charity's; _"You're not like other guys, are you?"_ I said to myself, "I'm what none of you expected. I'm going to rewrite everything, and show you all who I really am."

I clenched the cross in my hand, and threw it as hard as I could into the lake. I saw it glimmer before disappearing to the bottom of the water. This was now the beginning of the changes I would make, and I wouldn't be alone during all of this.

I already had my brilliant ideas, and I could already feel darkness surrounding me and giving me the power I needed to accomplish this. _But I'll need me somebody that will be my main pawn during all of this._ My mind instantly jumped back to the Fallen who I had saved from being jumped. I smiled. _Tristan._

* * *

><p>yay i'm not dead! ^^ lol. sorry for not uploading on this for a while. o.o i was nearly killing myself working two chapters a night, and just decided to turn this into a story that i only update on week-ends or days that i don't have school. (hope that's understood since i'm working on <em>Wolf's Howling<em>) :/ i was just so close to overworking myself, and plus this isnt an easy write for me. not at all. o.o so it will give my brain a rest before i fry it trying to figure out what should happen next. o.e -smoke comes out of brain- well, read, review, and other things. ~Copperpelt~


	15. I Can See It All Coming Together

_Kiba_

For the past month, I hadn't really left my office all that much. Only on the few occasions to get something to eat or some fresh air did I leave. I had been too busy weaving my web that would slowly encase this city and world. Making it all my own to remodel in my own ideals. And nobody knew that I was doing this.

Well, maybe Masomi, but I had fixed that. I had made sure to do my best to alienate myself away from my old friend. I didn't need him getting involved and messing up my plans. Out of my careful planning, I had Landis report to me everyone who was coming in the underground building to see me. Yet another cautious measure to take to keep certain undesirables out of my office; people like Caretakers and Masomi.

I just could afford them to get deeper into my work. A Caretaker had already sensed my work starting, and I was definitely sure she had an idea that I was the one behind this coming of darkness. She just didn't want to admit it. If Masomi knew, he'd end up trying his best to talk me out of this before things got too out of hand.

_That's not going to happen, my friend._ During my time I had spent deceiving the trust of Fallens who came to me for answers, I had been picking at their brains for information on where a certain Fallen may be. This Fallen I was hunting was Tristan. I still had a clear mental image of him in my mind; dark brown and shaggy hair, and a skinny build.

His weak mind was what I needed though. I had a vision where he was the catalyst for my dark rule, and I had clearly been the one to taint his mind with ideas. But I had to find him first. Since I had helped him from getting beat up, I hadn't seen hide or hair of him.

And according to those I questioned, they hadn't seen him either. _He couldn't have just vanished off the face of this retched planet._ I sighed. _If you want something done you have to do it yourself._ An aggravated growled escaped me, and I took large strides out of my office.

The meeting area in the building fell silent at my appearance. They didn't dare cross me if they had any common sense. They had seen what I had done to this one Fallen who tried to land a punch on me because of a smart comment I had made about his insolence.

My eyes fell on the still decimated shelves that I had thrown him into, and I smiled. _As if none of these Fallens know about the strength Messengers hold._ None of them are a match for a Messenger angel, especially one who was the son of the once great Aikido.

A scowl crossed my face. My father's name still burned my ears, and left a sick taste in my mouth. He had hurt my mother and I by leaving us for a human, which he had preached to me to never do. And to add on to my list of hate for him, he had been there to gloat when the human I had fallen in love with ran from me after I told her what I was.

As if it had all been a form of amusement to him. _I hope he enjoys the show that's soon to come then._ My father was going to be one of the first ones to get a taste of my future plans, and the sooner the better. He needed to pay as soon as he possibly could. I wouldn't hurt the human he fell in love with though.

No. She would suffer enough from watching my father's pain that was in store for him. As for the child. I clenched my teeth. I was sure I'd think of something special for that Half-breed that was made out of my father's lying ways. Landis saw me walking his way, and he quickly unlocked the door and opened it for me.

He asked, "Leaving early?" I could hear the shaking in his voice. Fear. Never in a million years had I thought that fear would have been my drug. The thing that I feed on for a high of ecstasy. It felt good, but the effects didn't last long. Leaving me with the taste for more.

I stopped at the door and without looking at him said, "I'm going out for a drink. I should be back later." I didn't stay around for his answer, and walked out of the door and out of the alley. The sun beat down on my eyes, and it took me a moment to adjust from being inside all day.

I followed the sidewalk all the way down to a club. When I walked in, the bartender saw me and immediately started fixing me something to drink. The bartender was also a Fallen, and I had serviced his questions before. He knew very well that I wasn't to be taken lightly.

Especially if I came in the club during the daytime. In such a short period of time I had turned into a creature of the night, lurking the shadows for the next person to corrupt and add as a step to my ladder of success. The bartender slid me a drink, and I caught the cold glass in my hand.

I glanced up at him, and just looked at him with a flat expression. The bartender said, "Oh. I'm sorry. It's the usual." I nodded my head, now knowing what he was serving to me. The usual was just a mix of different liquors. Nothing too fancy. I picked up the small glass and killed it all in one drink.

Feeling the drink unwinding my stress and nerves, I let out a relaxed sigh. "I needed that." I dug into my pocket and pulled out some money and laid it on the bar. "Keep the rest as a tip." I knew it would just end right back up in my pocket anyway. I turned around on the barstool and placed my elbows on the counter behind me.

I scanned the area, looking for familiar faces. Somebody walked up to me and said, "Kiba?" I turned and saw Jacob. The once Holy angel who had been cast out as a Fallen was standing in front of me, shock and disbelief plastered on his face. He asked me, "What happened to you?"

I smiled and said wryly, "I thought you said that you weren't going to be back in this city." Last I had seen of him, I had ran into him at the park. He had just Fallen not long ago, and was heading to a neighboring city to live with relatives who had Fallen way before him. Jacob shook his head.

"I was just taking a little trip here to get away from the relatives…" His voice trailed off. Last he had seen of _me_, I had still be the clueless and naïve Messenger angel who was unaware of the hell that was about to play out before me. I had been happy-go-lucky and living out my dream.

My old friend stood there before me, seeming lost for words. He said flatly, "You've changed….A lot." I laughed and gave him a look that could only be seen as calling him a clueless and lost fool. "I haven't changed that much. I've just gotten a taste of the real world. That's all." Jacob shook his head again.

I patted the barstool next to me and said, "Sit. We need to catch up." He stared at the seat for a moment, and I could see he wasn't so sure if taking a seat next to me was such a good idea. He finally gave in and sat next to me. I snapped my fingers and got the bartenders attention.

He popped his head up and saw me holding up two fingers. He nodded his head and started to make the two drinks. They were quickly placed in front of us. Jacob looked at them and said, "I'm not much on alcohol." I shrugged my shoulders and killed my second drink.

"At least try it. No need for it to go to waste." Jacob looked at it for a moment before taking a sip of the drink. He coughed the minute it touched his lips, and he sat the drink down. "Dear God what is in that?" He placed his hand on his chest, still coughing from the strength of the drink.

"Oh, just a little of this and a little of that." Jacob pushed the drink away from him. "Well, I've tried it, and I don't want anymore." I laughed and said, "Fine then. Suit yourself." I was still leaning my back on the counter behind me, but Jacob was sitting facing the shelves of alcohol.

I saw him spinning his drink glass in circles, and it had built up enough momentum to cause a drop to spill over the rim. He wiped it away with his finger, then wiped his finger on the leg of his jeans. Jacob said flatly to me, "I heard about your father. That's really a shame what Aikido did to you and your mother."

I still had a grip on my empty glass when he brought of up my father, and I tightened my grip. There was then a shattering sound, and I turned to look and saw the glass had broken in my hand. Glass jutted from my palm, and blood dripped onto the counter. Jacob's eyes were wide with shock, but I didn't feel any pain from the glass.

Simply, I started to pull the glass out of my hand and laid the shards on the counter. Now it was just the matter of the bleeding. The bartender had seen my actions, and handed me some paper towels. I took them and placed them on my hand. "This will have to do." I spoke as nothing had happened to me.

It was so nonchalant that even the bartender was taken aback, and he had seen me do this before. I turned and narrowed my eyes at Jacob. Coldly, I said, "Don't you dare bring up that bastard's name up again." Jacob gave me a nod of understanding. I then started to think that when my new world became a reality, then Jacob would be caught up in as well.

Sadly, even though I had known Jacob since I was two, he still had to be dragged down with the rest of this crumbling society. No matter what past we shared. Same way with Masomi and any others I had encountered during my stay on Earth. Jacob glanced down at the watch on his wrist, completely oblivious to the reign of terror that was to come.

It may take years, but it was going to happen. He said, "It's time I should be going, or else I'm going to be late getting back to the relatives." He glanced up at his watch and at me. "Kiba, you need to get out of whatever it is you're getting involved with. I can see it now, and this isn't you. This has never been you. Turn back before things go to hell for you."

His voice was serious and stern. I held my chin up slightly and said, "My life has already gone to hell, Jacob. And you don't know who I ever was before." Jacob closed his eyes and sighed. "I'm just trying to help you out, Kiba." I didn't say anything and watched him walk out of the bar.

The paper towel on my hand was already blood soaked and dark red. I hadn't noticed the bartender had placed more paper towels on the counter for me. I leaned over the bar and threw the bloodied paper towels into a trash can and replaced them with the new ones.

Already my wounds were healing up. Yet another perk of being a Messenger angel. It was true that Fallens and Holy angels heal quickly, but a Messenger angel could cut that healing time in half. There was a loud smack in the back of the club, and I turned around to see several large guys standing over somebody.

The attackers I could see were Fallens, and clearly intoxicated beyond what normal humans could tolerate. They were laughing and pointing at whoever was the poor soul they had beaten up. One of them moved and I saw the crumpled body laying on the floor.

A sly grin came across my face with no warning. It was Tristan they were beating up. Finally I found the Fallen I was looking for. The sweet smell of my destiny was already closing in on my senses. One of the Fallens kicked Tristan again, and I was able to see the pool of blood starting to form. _Ok, enough fun time for them. I need Tristan alive._ I slid off of my barstool and walked over to the Fallens.

* * *

><p>i wrote this late tonight cause i'll only have enough time to update one story tomorrow since i'm doing a lot of running around Saturday, and i still wanted to keep my word on uploading on the weekends. there should still be one Sunday as well. -yawns- dang i'm tired. it's like 11:30 pm where i'm at. at least i'll sleep good tonight. well, read, review, and other things. ~Copperpelt~<p> 


	16. A Little Lesson

_Kiba_

I walked up to one of the people who were beating Tristan into a bloody mess, and tapped him on his shoulder lightly. He turned around, burning red in his face and anger in his eyes. He was wearing a uniform from the job he worked at, which was apparently as a mechanic.

There was a place on the shirt above the pocket that had his name stitched in to it. He spat at me, "What do you want? Can't you see we're busy?" I looked at the others behind him. A few of them were Fallens, but none that I had serviced before.

I turned back to him and said, "Well, _Jim._ Do you know who it is that you're beating up?" Jim looked down at an unconscious Tristan and laughed. "Yeah. I'm beating up some punk that owed me money." I remained calm, and made sure that I showed him no emotion. Which I wasn't feeling anything other than joy that I had found my weak minded pawn at last. "Well, I'll be taking this 'punk' with me. You've all done enough to him already."

I walked past Jim and was about to help Tristan up to his feet when I felt something grab my arm right above my elbow. Slowly, I turned around and saw Jim had a grip on me. I laughed. "Who do you think you are, Jim? Somebody who's important? No. Somebody who's tops in society? No. Then what are you? Hmm. I know. You're nothing more than a weak, low-life piece of scum who has nothing better to that try and strike fear into others."

His face turned even redder, and he let loose a blind swing out of anger. I ducked, and grabbed his arm. Using the force of his swing, I ended up turning it against him and twisting his arm. There was a loud snap, and that was followed by Jim wailing.

It sounded like a pitiful animal that had been caught in a trap. Jim dropped down to his knees, and was still crying out and yelling obscenities at me and everyone around him. He then looked at his arm that was twisted upside down in an inhuman position, and his eyes widened in shock.

I pulled on the arm, and caused him to cry out again. Through gritted teeth I hissed at him, "I suggest you leave before this turns into your neck. Understand?" Jim nodded his head, tears rolling down his cheeks. I threw him to the side, and he landed on his injured arm.

Another cry came from him when he hit the ground, and he was helped up to his feet by the others who were helping beat Tristan up. I snapped at them, "Get!" They followed the orders like stray dogs that had been caught digging in the trash, and ran out of the bar with their tails between their legs. The bar was dead silent, and all eyes were on me now.

I said flatly, "You all can go back to whatever you were doing." I glanced around, and saw as people turned around and tried to hide themselves. Tristan was starting to come to. I nudged him with the front of my foot. "Get up." He made a noise and opened his eyes. "Kiba?"

I held out my hand and helped him up. Tristan wobbled on his feet for a few seconds, but eventually found his balance. His right eye was starting to swell up from where he had been punched. I told him, "Follow me. I have to talk to you." I started to walk out of the bar, and soon heard Tristan running to catch up with me.

I led him back to the underground building where my office was at. Landis let us when he saw that it was me who was knocking on the metal door. He didn't add a comment to the Fallen behind me that was bloodied up and bruised. I unlocked the door to my office and opened it.

Tristan looked inside of the room for a moment before walking in. I followed behind him and shut the door back. I walked behind my desk and opened the compact fridge I kept under the desk. I pulled out an ice pack and tossed it to Tristan.

"Put that on your eye. It will bring down the swelling." Tristan held the ice pack in his hands, then slowly brought it up to his injured eye. "Seems like every time you find me I'm getting my ass kicked." I laughed. "It seems that way, doesn't it?"

He repositioned the ice pack on his eye and asked, "What do you use this for?" I sat down in my chair behind my desk and said, "I get headaches pretty often." Tristan nodded his head and sat down in one of the other chairs. "Why did you help me back there instead of letting those guys kick my ass?"

I leaned back in my chair and said, "I can't do a good deed?" He had no clue of my true intentions. If he wasn't something of value to me, then I would have let those guys finish him off. It wouldn't have made a difference to me. But he was a part of my visions, and that made him of a considerable worth.

I had to find a way though to get into his mind and taint his thoughts. When that happened, he'd be at my mercy. I'd say jump, and he'd ask me how high. A true slave at my disposal. Tristan looked around at my office. "This place is awesome."

I shrugged and said nonchalantly, "I know a guy that does this stuff." Tristan kept looking around and nodded his head in approval. He then said, "Your name's been thrown around a lot lately. Some of it positive, some of it not so positive." I got up from my chair and walked around my desk.

"Well, everyone has their own opinion. Either way, I'm still getting business, so it doesn't really affect me all that much." I scanned my eyes over the Fallen without him noticing. What was his weak point? What could I keep attacking until I finally broke him down?

It wouldn't be simple enough to flat out ask him what his weakness was. No. I had to find it out on my own without him ever noticing, then bring it up. The perfect weapon is somebody's weakness. It doesn't matter the way it's used; psychological, biological, or modern.

They were all forms of warfare that exposed ones weakness and allowed the enemy to create an opening in the others defenses. My choice would be the psychological approach. That's what most of my plan required until all the gears clicked together and made the machine go into movement.

He was easy enough for me to read, and in a short amount of time I had gathered enough information on his thoughts that I could gain his trust. "Do you think it's fair how the Higher Powers just do whatever they want? Because I don't."

Tristan had taken the ice pack off of his eye, and the swelling had started to go down and was now leaving a hideous bruise in its place. "From my standpoint, it's not fair at all what they do." I nodded my head, acting interested in what he was saying when I already knew how this was going to play out. I started to pace the room as I spoke. "You know, there are more Fallens than Holy angels and Higher Powers, right? If anyone wanted to, they could rally up the Fallens and take over the Realm, but they'd have to find a way to break the barrier."

Tristan's eyes followed my movements. By his shocked expression, I could see now that an idea of another rebellion against the Realm would happen. He asked, "How would anyone break the barrier though?" I tapped my chin, and acted like I was deep in thought.

"Hmm. I'm sure with enough numbers and the right equipment it could happen. But there would have to be some serious determination involved." I had stopped pacing, and was now leaning on the edge of my desk. Tristan asked me, "Equipment? What kind of equipment would be able to break through the barrier?"

I smiled. "Have you ever heard of weapons made out of angel wings?" He probably hadn't. That information had been locked away a long time ago, but my father had told me about it. For hundreds of years there had been weapons made out of angel wings that were given to Fallens as a form of defense. T

he Holy angels were the only ones allowed to possess weapons at the time though, and they only worked inside of the Realm and at the hands of the Holy angels. When it was discovered that angel wings could be taken and made into weapons, the Fallens were the first to get them.

But of course with popularity, came demand. It wasn't enough that when an angel died the wings were taken off and made into weapons. No. Angels soon were being killed back and forth all for what was on their backs. The Higher Powers at the time put a stop to the making of the weapons. They were burned, torn apart, and demolished so they could no longer be used.

And they hadn't been used up to this very day. Since my father educated me on the weapons, I knew how they were made. All it would take would be me having to teach somebody willing to make them and sell them underground. Tristan shook his head.

Of course he didn't know about those weapons. You'd mention them in today's time, and people would think you were making it up. I leaned forward and said, "They used to be made all of the time out of the wings of dead angels, but the production got kind of out of control and the Higher Powers stopped it. Nobody knows how to make them anymore, except for me."

Tristan tilted his head to side. "How do you know how to make them?" I smiled wryly. "I'm a Messenger angel, remember? I know a lot of things." There wasn't anyway in hell that I was about to give my father the credit for teaching me this, even if he did deserve it.

Tristan's eyes were wide with excitement now. "You can make them then! And I can get together a group of Fallens and we can take down the Realm and make them pay for making all of us Fall and suffer!" He was going on and on about what _he_, wanted to do. This was my plan, not his.

"It's not that simple. I may know how to make them, but I'm not going to." The excitement left Tristan's face. "Why not? You don't agree with that the Realm is doing either, so why not help us out?" I told him flatly, "That's not my job. But I can teach somebody how to make them, if they're willing to."

Tristan nodded his head and asked, "How long would that take?" I shrugged my shoulders. "Dunno." Tristan was patting his foot impatiently on the floor. "So why even bring this up, Kiba?" I sat on top of my desk and said, "Because I'm tired of watching these Fallens suffer while the Holy angels and Higher Powers live a life of luxury. I've been up there, and it made me so sick that I left. It wasn't fair what they were doing."

I playing the perfect role of liberal. Tristan seemed to have fallen for my explanation better that I could have ever hoped. He asked, "What if I can find you somebody who would be willing to make those weapons?"

I thought for a moment and said, "I guessed I'd be more than welcome to teach them what I know. It would mean one step closer to the downfall of the Realm." Tristan stood up and said, "If I find one, I'll bring him here." He was about to walk off when I stopped him. "Wait."

Tristan turned around and looked at me. I said, "I'd love to talk more with you and exchange opinions on this world and the Higher Powers." This was my opening to get inside his head and start rewiring it to my advantage.

Tristan nodded his head and said, "Alright. I'll drop in sometime this week. By the way, thanks for helping me out back there. I don't see why some Fallens are saying that you can't be trusted."

I shrugged my shoulders and said, "I don't know either." Tristan left out of my office, and I smiled. Things were going almost too good to be true.

* * *

><p>aw. my weekend is almost over again. beh. it's going to be awkward tomorrow cause i have a class with an ex. o.o -hides- oh well. wish me luck. read, review, and other things. ~Copperpelt~<p> 


	17. Pitted Against Each Other

_Kiba_

I sighed as I walked from my office and locked the door behind me. I didn't think that night would ever end. It seemed like one Fallen after another was waiting by that door. _I knew I should have told Landis to limit how many he let in here._ The whole underground building was practically empty. Most of the Fallens in the place had gone off home when it got late.

The only ones who stayed were the ones with nothing better to do. Landis was leaning against the wall next to the door. His eyes were close, and his head was tilted down. I walked up to him and snapped my fingers next to his ear. He didn't move. "Landis." I kept snapping my fingers next to his ear to try and wake him. I finally grew annoyed and snapped, "Landis!"

My voice's power echoed off of the walls. Landis's eyes shot open, and he frantically looked around the room. "Wha-Oh. It's you, Kiba." I nodded my head slowly and looked at the door. "Could you do me a favor and unlock the door? I'd rather not stay the night in this place." Landis nodded his head and opened the door without any hesitation. I was just about to walk out, when Landis stopped me.

"Masomi came by today. He wanted to know if you were here." I kept my back turned to Landis, but turned my head to look at him. "And what did you tell him?" Landis was messing with the watch on his wrist. A simple action that told me his was nervous. That was a good sign.

People needed to fear me, and know that I wasn't somebody who needed to be toyed with. Landis knew this just as well as anyone who was in the building behind him. He had watched me put plenty of Fallens in their place. "I told him that you were too busy to see anybody else for the rest of the night."

I raised an eyebrow. I would have preferred he not even have told Masomi that I was here. "And what did my old friend say?" I had successfully kept Masomi out of my busy for a while, and I wasn't about to lose all the momentum I had gained from that. "He said he'd drop by tomorrow to try again. Then he walked off," said Landis.

I nodded my head. "When, and if, he shows up tomorrow, just tell him I'm not in. And if he doesn't leave, escort him away from here. I'm sure he'll understand." Landis nodded and said, "Will do." I walked down the alley, and onto the empty streets. People didn't ever go out at night, which was useful for me.

I could keep the gears in motion right under them, and they'd never know. I kept a steady pace down the sidewalk, and kept my hands tucked away in my pockets. I didn't stay at the apartment with Masomi anymore. I mainly stayed at my office, but occasionally I would go around the city and stake out potential pawns for my quest. And what better place, than the hardcore bars and clubs that housed the most potential? I walked into a bar, and was hit by the smell of alcohol.

A woman came stumbling up to me. Her hair was tangled, and she reeked of alcohol. It was a sure bet that she was drunk. She said something to me, but her speech was so slurred that I couldn't tell what she was saying. I shrugged her off of my arm, and she snaked off and did the same thing to another person.

I ignored her, and kept my mind on the task at hand; finding somebody else to lure into helping me create my new world. Anyone in the whole place would be of use to be. _It's a shame that they won't be around to see the world they helped me create. _

All of the Fallens that I had recruited, would be disposed of when my dream became reality. They were criminals and lowlifes, they had no place in my pure world. All they were of use for was getting me to where I was going. The only one I might spare, would be Tristan.

He could help to rule under me, and take over in case something happened to me. The bar was filled to the brim with Fallens. I didn't think there was a single human in the place. Well, except the bartender and drunk woman, who was still stumbling around.

_How much more sad can humans get?_ I shook my head, and kept scouting out the bar. There was all kinds of possible allies I could recruit, but none of them stood out to me. Feeling that my next pawn was nowhere in this bar, I walked out. I'd probably spend all night hunting around the city, and could still come up empty handed.

I started off down the sidewalk again, and stopped. No longer did I feel that I was alone. I turned to my right, and stared down an alley. I couldn't see anything past a dumpster that was against the wall.

Not even my advanced vision revealed anything to me. I narrowed my eyes, and got ready to fight if I needed. It could have just been a homeless man, but I didn't want to take any chances. Two eyes then lit up from the darkness, and they lunged at me.

_Kiba_

Whoever was attacking me, had gotten in one good hit. But that was it. I easily turned the tables around, and had him slammed to the ground, my foot on his chest. The streetlights showed me who it was. My eyes widened in surprise. "Masomi," I hissed.

I put more pressure on his chest with my foot. He coughed and said, "Get your foot off of me!" I only put more pressure. He kept coughing as he tried to talk or take in more air. I knew crushing in his chest wouldn't kill him, but it would be painful. "Why don't you tell me what gave you the gall to attack me?" He tried to push my foot from his chest.

"I would…If you get your….Damn foot off of me!" I narrowed my eyes and looked down at him for a moment. "You're in no position to be making commands." His legs kicked as he tried to get out from under my weight. He was out of luck. He wasn't going anywhere until otherwise. "Fine…Please get your foot off of me." I lifted my foot from him and said, "That's better."

He sat up, and was holding his chest where my foot had been. He coughed several times, then glared up at me. I tapped into his mind by using my powers. He had been waiting for me to leave my office. After that, he had followed me to the bar. And now, here we were.

His little plan had backfired on him. Big time. I knelt down and hissed, "Any reason in particular you have for following me around?" He was still coughing. He would be doing that for sometime. At least until his chest healed up. "I was following you because you've gone insane. You might not think I know since you've been avoiding me, but I've heard what Fallens have been saying."

He got up on his feet, and glared back at me. "Insane? I prefer the term of visionary." Masomi rolled his eyes. "Visionary, huh? Visionary of what?" Masomi wouldn't understand what I was aiming for. And if I did tell him, then surely he'd try and stop my plans from working.

"A visionary of how things should be. And that's all I'm telling you." Masomi let out a humorless laugh. "Of how things should be? So, you're saying they should be completely insane like you've become?" It was strange when I compared this conversation with Masomi, from the others we had before. The two were totally opposite. I said, "If that's how I see the world should be, then yes."

Masomi rolled his eyes again, and shook his head. "What the hell has happened to you? Is this all because of Charity? Please tell me it isn't." I growled at him. Charity wasn't the root cause of my problems, but she was one nonetheless. "She isn't the reason for all of this. I just had a realization of the morals in this world. They need to be changed. And the sooner, the better."

Masomi sighed and said, "You can't possibly be the Kiba that I remember." I smiled and said, "You're right. That Kiba has been gone for a long time." Masomi lowered his head and looked down at the ground. "Then, if you're not the same Kiba, then maybe I can knock some sense back into you."

He swung his fist, and clipped my jaw. I stumbled back in surprise. The hit itself didn't hurt. Not the least bit. I narrowed my eyes at him and growled. I then unfolded my wings, and hit him with the back of one. He was knocked back and into the middle of the street.

I walked over to him and looked down on him like I had when he had tried to jump me earlier. He was holding his chest and groaning. His healing time had just been extended. I knew that none of my feathers had cut him, but the impact had caused some damage.

He coughed, and this time little sputters of blood came out. I knelt down and said, "Next time, know what you're going up against. You might not get hurt as badly." I stood back up and added, "I suggest staying out of my way. Or your might not be as fortunate next time."

All he did was gasp and cough. He'd probably lay in the street for a while, then crawl away to find a place to heal up in. _Just like an injured dog._ I turned around and unfolded my wings, then took off into the sky. Leaving my old friend behind in the street.

_Masomi_

Pain was an understatement. A more suitable word might have been burning death, but even that didn't seem to come close. I hadn't expected Kiba to do something so out of character. Or at least, out of the character that I knew. I was still rolling around in the street.

My chest felt crushed, and catching my breath was growing more difficult by the minute. I knew I wasn't going to die, but I felt close to it. Already, I could feel my chest healing itself, but it wasn't fast enough for my liking. I got to my hands and knees, and crawled back to the alley where I had jumped out and made the mistake of attacking Kiba.

I coughed again, and cringed from the pain that the movement caused me. What had happened to Kiba? I couldn't believe that Charity had been what sent him over the deep end. There had to be something else at play. Something that I didn't know about.

I didn't want to watch my old friend go so far off the deep end, that there would be no return for him. He was still my friend, after all. There had to be something I could do to bring him back to sanity. But what? He already didn't seem like the same person I remembered.

And I was pretty sure that he was slipping further away every minute. I coughed again, and held on tightly to my sides. What was Kiba planning on doing? He had been talking about how he thought the world should be. Was he really crazy enough to try and change the world? The only thing that I was sure about, was that I was going to try and stop him before things got worse.

* * *

><p>sorry for not updating on this one for a little while. like I've said before, this isnt something easy for me to write. : plus, i've been busy busy busy busy on my weekends. again, thanks to all who have reviewed on this so far. even though it's story stats aren't all that good, there are still more than I expected to get and that means a lot to me. ^^ read, review, and other things. ~Copperpelt~


	18. Sharp

_Kiba_

I ran my thumb along my jaw line; Masomi had landed at least one good hit on me last night. But that was it. I had put him in his place without even breaking the slightest sweat. _Just goes to show that this world doesn't need weak beings like him._

I quit messing with the faint bruise on my face, which would fade away within the hour, and leaned back in my chair. It groaned underneath my weight. Across from me, was my pawn, Tristan. He had changed even more since I had begun my corruption of his already brittle mind. He looked much, much darker from the pitiful Fallen I had saved several years back.

And I couldn't have been more pleased. I noticed that he kept eyeing the spot on my jaw where Masomi sucker punched me. Tristan cleared his throat and said cautiously, "What happened to your jaw?" I laughed and waved a nonchalant hand at him.

"Just a little scuffle. Nobody ever said that people make good decisions." He nodded his head and didn't bring it up again, which was a good thing. Because I didn't feel like going into detail about what transpired between me and my old friend, Masomi. Music from the main room was seeping into the walls of my office. The noise didn't bother me, so I let the Fallens in the main room have their fun.

While they still could. Because, before their eyes, an entirely new world was going to come into being. They wouldn't have time for fun and games while they were fighting for their own lives. I looked back at Tristan. His arms were folded over his chest, and his legs were crossed, his attention was someplace completely different.

I smiled, stood up and slammed my hands down on the desk in front of me. Tristan jumped in his seat, eyes wide with surprise. "You've come a long way, Tristan. And you've made much improvement from how you used to be." He started to relax when he saw that I wasn't about to kill him or go ballistic. That was the way all people needed to be.

They needed to always be wondering whether I was going to be calm or mad. From my point, it was rather a fun game of messing with a person's mind without even using my powers to do so. Tristan stared at me and said, "And I take it that this improvement is good?"

I laughed. How simple minded these Fallens were compared to me. "Why of course it's good. I wouldn't want you regressing when there is so much work ahead of us. Now would I?" Tristan shook his head. The Fallen hadn't quite figured me out yet, but he was close to doing so.

There was a knock at my office door. A voice from the other side spoke. "Kiba?" I narrowed my eyes and snapped, "What? Who's there?" Tristan was about to open the door, but I stopped him. The voice now sounded even more shaky, and I felt addiction to the fear of others kick in.

"I have a delivery. Should I leave it out here?" The person had to know of who I was, or else he wouldn't be afraid of me. A Fallen. But of course. People didn't know about me. I said calmly, "Just leave it out there." I counted the seconds, and when I heard the footsteps run off, I smiled.

I opened the door and picked up the package, then turned to Tristan. "Intimidation is your best friend. Remember that little side note." Tristan nodded his head and looked at the package. "What's in it?" I smiled. "Something that I've been waiting for." I opened the box.

Tristan's eyes were trying to see over my back and into the box. My hand scanned over the contents of the box, unable to pick what I wanted to examine first. I finally made my choice, and pulled out a dagger. The blade was stark black, and looked sharp enough to cut the air that I was breathing.

Tristan stared at it with awe and said, "Is that…One of those angel wing weapons you spoke about?" I smiled once more and said, "Yes. How observant of you to remember something like that, Tristan." I ran my thumb along the flat side of the blade. It was colder than ice from not being handled since its creation.

Tristan said behind me, "Of course I'd remember something like this. It's not easy to forget being told about the one weapon that can kill a Fallen." I nodded, impressed with Tristan's stored knowledge. He walked up next to me, and looked into the box.

His eyes widened when he saw all of the other angel wing weapons. There was everything from throwing knives to the sword. All of them, stark night black in color. Just like the wings they had come from. I walked off from the box, leaving Tristan there to stare at the box.

I said, "You better start familiarizing yourself with those weapons." Tristan whipped around and looked at me. "What do you mean?" I motioned to the box with my chin and said, "That's yours. You're going to need to get used to them if this war is going to happen in order to make a pure world."

He turned back to the box, and picked up one of the throwing knives. He looked it over like I had done to the dagger. That one little knife, could mean death for a Fallen. And that was just how it needed to be. I stuck my hands into my pockets and said, "Tristan, I want you to stay here till dark. Can you do that?"

He looked up from the knife and said, "Yeah. But why?" The corners of my lips tilted up like they did when part of my plan came together. "I want you to stay, because we're going to do a little training later."

_Kiba_

Tristan had gone into the main room of the underground building that the Fallens gathered in. I didn't blame him. He wasn't solitary like me; he was still young and looking for something to take his mind off of things. We had another hour of daylight before it was dark, and my special 'training' would begin.

I stepped out of my office, and into the main room. Tristan was sitting around with other Fallens and enjoying their conversations. _Don't get attached to them, Tristan._ He looked up and found me leaning against the wall. Apparently he had gotten the little message I sent him, and he left his little group.

The last thing he needed was to become friends with Fallens that would most likely end up dead when the war began. He stopped in front of me and said, "I'm sorry. I forgot about that for a moment." I nodded my head and said, "No worries. You'll learn eventually."

I slipped back into my office, and grabbed the dagger from the set of weapons. I wasn't sure why, but I had taken rather fondly to it. Perhaps this would end up being my weapon of choice one day. I slipped it into its sheath, and walked out of my office.

I made sure to lock the door to keep Fallens out. I couldn't afford to lose those weapons. They had cost a pretty penny, which was the only bad thing about having one underground forger in the city. He could charge whatever he pleased for his wares.

I handed over the dagger to Tristan and said, "We'll use this one tonight. Now, come on. We have work to do." He nodded and slipped the dagger under his belt, making sure to hide it with his shirt. While walking towards Landis, I asked him, "Have you done anything like this before?"

Tristan shook his head. Landis opened the door for us. Nobody said a word to each other. Landis was starting to grow extremely wary of me, and not in the way that I wanted. He had been afraid of me at one point, and now I couldn't help but get the feeling that he was planning something.

I whispered to Tristan, "Keep an open eye out tonight. There's something….Ominous in the winds." Tristan nodded his head and rounded the corner with me. I kept glancing behind me to be sure that we hadn't been followed. And when I meant followed, I meant by Landis.

"So, where exactly are we going?" asked Tristan. He had taken the sheathed dagger out from under his belt, and was spinning the protected blade in his hands. "I'll let you know when we get there," I replied to Tristan. We kept walking, and I still couldn't shake the feeling that we had been followed.

I thought I had caught a quick glimpse of something jump from one building to another, but when I looked up, there wasn't anything but the sky. Tristan asked, "Is everything alright?" I turned my senses to alert, not wanting to let anyone get a possible upper hand on me.

"I'm not sure. I feel as if we've been followed." Tristan looked around, trying to find who was tailing us. "I don't see anyone." I said back to him, "Just cause you don't see them, doesn't mean they aren't there." We kept walking until I heard the swooshing sound of wings. I held out my arm and stopped Tristan from walking. Landis stepped out of the shadow of a building, his eyes narrowed at me. I said to Tristan, "Looks like we're training right here."

_Kiba_

Landis had followed us from the underground building. I tensed up out of habit. There wasn't any need for me to worry about Landis, even though he was a decent match for me. This was more for Tristan to see what he was made of. To see if I had made the right choice in a pawn, or if I had corrupted somebody who was completely worthless.

Tristan's hand tightened on the dagger, but what good was it going to do for him if it was still sheathed? _Think for once, Tristan._ I knew I could stand on my own against Landis without any weapons, but even with a weapon, Landis could snap Tristan in half. That was how much of a mass difference there was between the two.

"How about you take care of him, Tristan?" The Fallen was about to draw the blade from the dagger, when Landis stopped him. "No. I don't want to fight your little servant, Kiba. I want to fight you." He started to step towards Tristan and I. He continued to speak.

"I'm on to your little game, Kiba. And whatever it is, it's not going to work. I'll make sure of that. Because I know that you're not up to anything good." I decided to play clueless and said, "I don't know what you're talking about, Landis. What could I possibly be up to?"

His eyes narrowed at me with deathly daggers. "I don't know what you're up to, Kiba. But I'm going to stop you before you can push your plan along any further." I laughed and stepped closer to Landis. "I always knew you were weak," my voice was a faint hiss.

He bowed up the closer I stepped to him. Quickly, I unfolded my wings and hit him with the back of them. He stumbled back, but I hadn't hit him enough to knock him down. Landis charged at me, and I dove out of the way. Instead of attacking me, he was heading straight for Tristan.

Landis hit his breaks, and turned back to me. I stood straight, and kept smiling at Landis. I showed no signs of fear. No signs of emotions. This played with his mind, but he shook it off and charged at me again. Then, he gasped and fell to the ground. Blood began to pour from his mouth.

Tristan was standing above Landis's body. His shoulders were heaving from the energy he had to exert in order to take out the Fallen. He dropped the bloodied dagger on the ground and asked me, "You okay?" I smiled at my pawn. He had just proven to me two things.

One, he had it in him to kill his own kind. And two, he would protect me if danger came my way, whether I could handle it or not. "Yes. I'm fine. That was a very good display you just showed me." His hands fumbled to pick the dagger up. "Good display? I just killed him."

I walked over to Tristan, and put my hand on his shoulder. "There's going to be a lot more where this came from. You might want to get used to seeing this. But you just showed me that you have it in you to do something like this. And that will come in handy when the war starts. Which, I feel, will be much sooner than I have been expecting."

* * *

><p>ah yes. i have not forgotten about this story. there just aren't enough hours in the day to upload two stories. especially when there is so much to do on the weekends. i do believe that there is going to be another year skip in the next chapter. that way we can get to the action since i've been beating this story around the bus. read, review, and other things. ~Copperpelt~<p> 


	19. Memories Of The Past

_Masomi_

I stared down from the roof of a building, unable to believe that Kiba had actually persuaded this young Fallen to kill Landis. This was proof of his insane web of ideas taking root in the ground of this city. I clenched my hands into fists. This was not the Messenger angel that I had once knew six years ago.

Or the same one I knew last year for that fact. Kiba and his little apprentice walked from the scene, leaving Landis's dead body behind. There would be a swarm of news reporters around him by morning, and I didn't want to watch his body plastered on every piece of media in the city. I unfolded my wings, and dropped down to the ground below me.

Landis wasn't quite dead yet; painful moans escaped his mouth as the last bit of his life slipped through his fingers. I knelt down beside him, a sick feeling growing inside of my stomach as I observed how much blood there was. This would be an everyday thing if Kiba got whatever it was he was wanting.

I still couldn't believe that my old friend was capable of causing something like this to happen. And he had done it easily, which was the scary part. If he was able to cause an sphere of influence this quickly, then there was no telling what else he would do. Kiba had to be stopped.

But he was already dug in so deep with the Fallens, that I knew I'd be working on my own. Nobody would go up against this Messenger angel from either fear or respect. I seemed to be the only one who saw through him, but I was also the only one he had probably told his true intentions to.

And who would believe me? I was the one Fallen on this planet that nobody would take seriously. _If Kiba could make his own connections, then perhaps I can as well._ I looked back down at Landis, who had finally passed. There was no where for me to take his body to.

I hated the idea of leaving him there, but I had no other choice. _I'm sorry._ I unfolded my wings and flew over the city. The cool night air blew through my hair as I scanned the ground below me. I had a pretty good idea on who to find to start getting ready for Kiba's destructive future.

The person was halfway across the city, but that wasn't a long distance for me to fly. I landed in the street in front of her house, and walked up to the door. There was a doorknocker on the door, and I slammed it several times. I knew the owner would be angry for being disturbed at this late hour, but I needed to speak with her. Now.

She opened the door. A woman in her middle-aged range. I smiled. "Bertha. I'm sure you're happy to see me tonight." I tried to keep my tone light, despite the seriousness that this whole visit was built on. She growled. "What do you want this late at night, Masomi."

I leaned against the doorframe and said, "Oh, nothing major. I just wanted to talk to you about this guy named Kiba." Her eyes widened, and her face drained of color. "Kiba?" I nodded my head. "Yeah. You heard of him, Bertha?" She nodded and motioned for me to come inside of her home.

"Come. Sit and talk with me." I walked through the door, making sure to shut it behind me. Her home wasn't big, and there was nothing special about it. It could have belonged to any normal person. But Bertha wasn't normal. She knew what I was, where we came from, and everything else concerning the Holy and Fallen angels.

She was a Caretaker, personally chosen by the Higher Powers to tend to the Fallens on Earth. She could see our wings and eyes, distinguish us from everyday people passing by her on the streets, and more. I sat down on her plush couch, almost getting swallowed up in the cushions.

She was in the kitchen, as usual. "Do you want something to eat or drink, Masomi?" I pushed myself out of the carnivorous couch cushions. "Nah. I'm good." Bertha came walking into the living room, holding a small ceramic cup on a saucer. She sat it down on the coffee table, and I could smell the scent of strong brewed coffee.

She was planning on this conversation being a long one, and it probably was going to be. I leaned forward and said, "Alright, tell me how you know Kiba before I get sucked into this couch." Bertha sighed and smiled. "That's one quality I like about you, Masomi. You're always able to find something humorous, no matter how serious the situation."

I leaned back, holding out my arms. "What can I say? I'm gifted like that." We both laughed, but it quickly faded away in a matter of seconds. Bertha sipped her coffee slowly, then set it back down on its little plate. She inhaled a deep breath as she got ready to speak.

"I talked with Kiba one night. I felt there wasn't something right in the atmosphere, and the other Caretakers insisted that I go consult the new Messenger angel. From the start, I felt that the disturbance was because of him, and when I talked with him, it only reassured me more."

When she spoke with Kiba, it must have been after things started to get crazy. "Well, you're were certainly right about him causing trouble," I said solemnly. Bertha tilted her head to the side. "What has he done?" I rested my arms on my knees. "He had this Fallen kill Landis earlier tonight."

She let out a small gasp. This was something she probably wasn't expecting. "Landis is dead?" I nodded my head, wishing that she'd switch to another subject and leave Landis's death out of this until it settled more. Right now, it was still too raw of a wound. Bertha saw this unease in me, and tried her best to talk about something else that still remained on the topic of Kiba.

"You said he had a Fallen kill Landis?" I straightened my back, which was starting to hurt from leaning forward to talk with Bertha. "Yeah. I don't know who he is, but I do know that Kiba has been polluting the hell out of his mind." Bertha shook her head. "Do you have any idea why?" I did.

It was such an unrealistic goal, but if anyone could achieve it, it would be Kiba. "He's planning on molded the world and Realm in his ideal image. He said something to be about starting a war or whatever to make it easier, and I think he's using that Fallen to start it."

She leaned back, looking much more tired and older. "A war. Among who? The humans? Fallens?" Bertha had downed the rest of her coffee, and quickly ran to the kitchen for more. She returned with a larger cup, filled to the brim. "Might as well saw a war against everyone. Fallen, Holy, human. They're all fair game to him."

Bertha buried her face into her hands, running her fingers through her graying hair as well. I told her flatly, "We need to start getting ready for this. Now would be best. Because nobody knows when his war is going to start. I don't even think Kiba knows either."

She had moved her hands down to her lap, playing with the rings that were on her fingers. "What do you suggest we do about this?" she asked calmly. One of her rings slipped off her finger, which she gingerly bent over in her chair and picked it up, and placed it back on her finger.

"I say we start gathering up as many Fallens as we can. They have to be a hundred percent against Kiba. We can't afford anyone betraying us." Bertha nodded, her short hair following the movement. "I'm going to be making my runs tomorrow. I can drop a question or two to the Fallens about Kiba and see if we can start to gather out potential allies."

I nodded. This war was turning out to be more real than I had thought. I laid back on the overstuffed couch and put my hands behind my head. "Can we continue this in the morning or sometime tomorrow? I'm just too tired right now," I said with a yawn followed afterwards.

Bertha stood up, holding her now empty coffee cup. "Of course. You're more than welcome to stay in one of the guest rooms." I smiled and said, "Nah. I'll just crash on this comfy couch."

She shot me a smile, but behind it I saw that it was as worried about the future as I was. It used to be that I didn't think about tomorrow, but now I wondered if there would even be one.

_Kiba_

Tristan was a little out of it after he had killed Landis, but after I told him that he had done a good job, he began to calm down. I could afford my most important pawn thinking twice about killing the enemy. He couldn't regret anything he did either.

It would only hold him back and mess with his mind. I needed him in the top condition when we finally struck. No telling how long that would be, since there was still much work that needed to be done. Tonight, was kind of the start of my plan.

The way the dagger that Tristan had used to kill Landis, looked like the kind of wound that was inflicted by a Fallen. This would cause controversy among their kind. They would all be too focused on trying to figure out who and why Landis was killed. It was just the opening that was needed.

And soon, they would start suspecting their friends and fellow Fallens around them. Everyone they looked at would be an enemy. This would increase as more Fallens were killed in the same matter. So, I had two things going for me; Tristan becoming the puppet I would control, and the trust issues forming within the Fallens.

"Have you ever been double-crossed, Tristan?" I suddenly asked him. He turned his head to look at me. "Not as far as I know. I usually stay away from people who I felt would turn on me." I smiled on the inside. _How blind you are. You can't even see that I'm using you right now._ "Well, that's good. That means you have good intuition," I lied.

It didn't hurt every once in a while to throw a treat to the pet. We stopped walking. I said to Tristan, "It's been a long night. You go on back home and we'll continue letting you get used to those weapons tomorrow." He nodded, unfolded his wings, and flew off. I looked across the street and saw Masomi's apartment.

Of course I would have picked this place to stop walking at. The lights inside were off. He was probably still in there and licking the wounds I had given him the other night. Considering he had even made it that far. He could have still been in some alley as he healed.

The longer I stared at the building, I began to see images from several years ago. I shook my head, and turned my back to the building. That was the old me that was in there, and I was not going to allow it to leave.

Before I started to stroll down memory lane, I unfolded my own wings, and flew away from the building as quickly as I could. I made a note that, that building would be the first one on my list of things to get rid of.

* * *

><p>why is it that i get ideas for this story at freaking midnight when im about to go face first into the keyboard and end up writing something like this; uhfuhfujahsuahuuh... -.- i don't get it either. ah, the joys of being a workaholic. well, before i did, read, review, and other things. ~Copperpelt~<p> 


	20. Lost And Found

_Masomi_

I woke up, still on the couch in Bertha's home. The smell of food was already flooding the house. If Bertha hadn't ever became a Caretaker, she probably would have gone into the restaurant business as much as she cooks. But it was clear to see she was happy working with us Fallens.

It honestly didn't ever seem to matter to Bertha where she ended up in life. I sat up on the couch, my back popping several times because I hadn't moved all night. My stomach growled, telling me that I wanted whatever that smell was. In order to find out, I walked into the kitchen.

Just as I pictured, Bertha was over at the stove and cooking away. She only cooked like this when either she had a large crowd to feed, or she was really stressed out over something. And since it was just me, her, and maybe one other Fallen hiding in the house, she was probably stressed.

She had every right to be. Kiba was trying to start a war, and no telling what else his twisted mind had thought up. "In a cooking mood this morning?" I asked her, trying to lighten up the tone. She hadn't even noticed that I had been in the kitchen until I said something.

"Oh. Don't startle me like that, Masomi." I rolled my eyes. Yeah. She was stressed. If Bertha was ever so focused on frying bacon that you snuck up on her, then she was almost to the point of pulling her hair out. I placed my hand on her shoulder and said, "Calm down. You don't have to watch the bacon that intensely."

She sighed. "I know, Masomi. But you know how I get when I'm under stress." I nodded. She had mellowed out in her age, but I had heard stories about when she first became a Caretaker. She could hardly handle the stress of tending to the Fallens, much less accepting the fact that we were real beings, and not just creatures from books.

I was happy that I Fell when she had gained more experience, because I was getting cut up around every corner until I learned who I needed to keep my mouth shut around. She put the bacon down on a plate with paper towels. There had to have been an entire package of bacon that she cooked.

I stared at it, and began to wonder if she had cooked anything else. If she had, then I didn't see anything else sitting around. "Planning on feeding an army?" I asked and then realized the irony in my statement. Bertha and I were pretty much planning on building our own army to counteract Kiba's.

She smiled, obviously not catching to accidental joke I made. Or if she had, she wasn't going to acknowledge. _Bertha does know how my mouth gets me in trouble._ I grabbed one of the strips of bacon and took a bite. "So, how are we going to plan out this thing against Kiba?" I asked between bites.

I finished the strip, then looked back at the plate. The amount that she had cooked was ridiculous. I knew I could only be killed by another Fallen, but I was pretty sure that much artery-clogging meat would kill me. "We need to find somebody to start recruiting. That's the only place we can start," she said while scrubbing the skillet she cooked in.

If that was our square one, then we didn't have much choice but to go along with it. "But who can we get to go around and recruit? They at least have to be somebody that's in pretty high-standings with the Fallens. Or else they won't listen to him." It was for sure that none of the Fallens were going to listen to or take me seriously.

So, I was out of the question. We sat there, a plate of bacon between us, and thought. I could practically feel the smoke coming out of my ears. Everybody I thought of, already seemed to be on Kiba's side from what I had been told. Bertha was coming up empty-handed as well.

"What about Paul?" she asked. I cringed at the name. "Seriously? Paul?" _Of all of the Fallens she could have picked, she had to pick the most arrogant one of them all._ I hadn't ever talked with the guy personally, but I did know a thing or two about him. He was like that kid in your class that thought they were better than everybody, and you didn't want to admit that they were.

"I think Paul would be a good candidate for our recruiter," said Bertha, not understanding the loathing I felt for this certain Fallen. But Paul was fairly respected among the Fallens, despite his young age. Everybody always would say something like, _"Oh, it's because Paul is wise beyond his years."_

I rolled my eyes. Bertha sighed. "I know you don't like him, but what other choices do we have?" I thought for a moment then smiled and said, "We could get a sewer rat. I'm sure that will work just as well as Paul would." Bertha narrowed her eyes at me, making my sarcastic smile vanish.

I growled, not wanting to admit that Paul was the only option we had at the moment. "You're right. But I don't even know where he's been hiding out," I told her truthfully. Paul had pretty much vanished recently. Almost around the time Kiba started to make his move.

Did Paul know what was going on before it really started up? Bertha traced circles on the table with her finger. "I'm sure I can find somebody who knows where he's at." If anybody could, it was Bertha. I stood up and said, "Well, you can hunt for him, Bertha. I'm going down to the hangout for a while." I pushed the chair back under the table.

_Masomi_

I had to shield my eyes when I stepped outside. Even though the sun and sky were shielded from all Fallens, it was still brighter than I expected it to be. _This is what I get for staying in Bertha's dimly lit home for so long._ You could pretty much plan on going blind if you stayed too long at Bertha's.

She only seemed to keep one lamp on. Sometimes she'd have on two, if you were lucky. I went down the well traveled path back to the hangout that every Fallen in the city went to. I still couldn't believe nobody had bothered to name the place. It was probably for the best so humans wouldn't find it.

I knocked on the door, and immediately thought of Landis. He wouldn't be answering that steel door ever again. I wondered if anyone had found his body. Everybody probably knew though. Or were at least wondering why Landis wasn't at his usual post. I knocked on the steel door.

When it opened, it was somebody completely new. For a moment, I was actually expecting Landis. _This is going to take some getting used to._ The new Fallen didn't speak, but only opened the door for me, and closed it when I walked inside. _Rude._

There was a somber feel in the air, which meant that the Fallens in here knew that Landis was dead. I found a Fallen that I knew and asked him, "Do you know if Kiba is back there?" I didn't want to run the risk of running into my new enemy, since he had made sure to keep me out of this place for a long time.

The Fallen shook his head. "He never showed up this morning." I thanked him and went to sit at the bar. I sat down on one of the spinning stools, and turned a few circles until I got dizzy. I stopped, and allowed myself to let my vision settle back in. I then began to look over the crowd of Fallens that were sitting around on couches and chairs.

How many of them were on Kiba's side? It was so hard to tell now that Kiba had his roots so deep within the Fallens. I sighed and turned around to face the bar. The bartender, also a Fallen, offered me something to drink.

I shook my head, declining his offer. _Maybe coming here wasn't the best of ideas._ Something caught my eye further down the bar. I turned and looked to see who it was that I recognized. Sitting there, at the very end, was Paul.

_Masomi_

My jaw almost hit the floor. Of all places to find him after he went into hiding, he was sitting in most popular spot for Fallens in Bay City. He was sipping on some kind of drink. How had nobody been able to know where he was at, when he was sitting right there?

My natural hate for him began to stir, but I had to subdue it when I remembered that we needed him on our side. I got off of the bar stool, and walked over to him. What if he didn't want to help fight against Kiba? I stood there next to him. Paul glanced up at me and said, "Can I help you with something?"

I hated the tone in his voice. It told me that he was already annoyed with me. "Could you come with me to Bertha's?" He turned around on his barstool, and raised an eyebrow. "That Caretaker lady? Why would I want to go there?" I was biting the inside of my cheek, trying not to come up with something smart to say. "Because, we need some help with a problem, and you're the only one we could think of."

I didn't want to blurt out that we needed him to help stop Kiba, since I was standing in a room filled with Fallens, and half of them were on his side. Paul kept the same annoyed expression on his face. "What problem?" This guy wasn't making it easy for me to explain to him our issue.

If it were anywhere else than this place, I would have blabbed to him the whole story. But, I wasn't anywhere else. I was in this place. The home base for Kiba. The very place that I had introduced to him. "I can't really talk about this problem here, cause this is where the problem kind of is. If you would just go with me to Bertha's, I'll explain everything you want to know. Then you can tell us whether you'll help out or not."

He sat there for a moment and thought over my offer. I was tapping my foot as I waited for his answer. How could anyone take this long to answer a simple yes or no question? Especially since he had been hiding. And I seriously doubted he had any plans or dates to go on later this afternoon.

"Alright. As long as I don't have to worry about you bothering me if I say no." He stood up and started to walk away. I stood there, stunned that he had flat-out insulted me. "Hey! Are you going to show me where this woman lives, or not?" Paul yelled across the room. A few Fallens were looking back and forth at the two of us.

_Yeah. Could you be anymore obvious?_ I hurried across the room to catch up with Paul, who had already walked out of the steel door. The new Fallen who had taken Landis's place, still said nothing to me as I walked by, or anything to the Fallens who were walking in at the same time. Already, the world seemed to be changing.

* * *

><p>spur of the moment inspiration. :p gotta love it so. i'm sure you all saw what i did there. ;p because i dont. XD lol. there might be another upload sunday, i doubt friday since i'm busy as a bee that day. well, read, review, and other things. ~Copperpelt~<p> 


	21. Infiltrated

_Masomi_

Paul hardly spoke on the trip back to Bertha's, which didn't bother me. It was a mutual understanding that the two of us didn't get along, and I found that things would go easier if we didn't make many conversations. I pointed up ahead and said, "That's her house."

Paul nodded, looking at something else. I wondered if he was even paying any attention to where we were at. I led him into the house, where we found Bertha sipping on a cup of coffee and watching the news in the living room. She turned to look at who had entered her house, and almost dropped her cup when she saw Paul. "You already found him?" she said, surprised that it hadn't taken us several months like we thought it would have.

Bertha put down the cup of coffee before she did drop it. Paul was inspecting the house. He was one of the few Fallens who didn't bother to go to Caretakers for help, so this was new territory for him. He didn't seem to be very impressed though.

While he was looking at a picture hung on the wall, he said, "Masomi told me that you have a problem that requires my help. He didn't bother to explain it back at the bar." I growled and muttered a couple of words under my breath, but he didn't hear them. Bertha did though, and she elbowed me in the ribs, as if to tell me to shut up.

I rolled my eyes, knowing that I did need to watch my words because we couldn't afford to lose Paul. He was the only one that we could think of that would be of any help to us. Bertha cleared her throat and said, "We do have a slight problem. I'm sure you've heard of Kiba."

Paul leaned against the wall and said, "Yeah, the name's floated around quite a lot." Bertha nodded and said, "Well, he's our problem. He's-" I cut her off and said, "He's completely gone off the deep end." Bertha glared at me and continued to speak. "That's about right. But what I was trying to say is that he's plotting to create a new world."

Paul stared down at the ground and said, "How do I play a role in this?" I had no clue how Bertha was keeping her cool around him, when I wanted to pull out my hair and shout. I couldn't stand the arrogance on his face. This was a serious matter, and he wasn't taking it seriously.

"You were the only one that we could think of that hasn't been influenced by Kiba," Bertha replied. Paul tilted his head back and asked flatly, "How do you know that I haven't already been influenced by him?" I tightened my jaw and snapped, "If you were, then you would have killed us because we're trying to stop Kiba."

The two of them stared at my sudden outburst, and Paul shrugged. "True enough, I guess. I still don't understand how I'm supposed to help with this. What do you plan on me doing? Kill the Messenger angel so your problem will be solved?"

Paul might have stood a decent chance against Kiba, but odds were he wouldn't have escaped the fight alive. He did have a valid point; we had no idea what Paul could do in the fight against Kiba. But, as usual, Bertha was one step ahead of all of us. "You have to get on the inside. Join Kiba's army and earn his trust. From there, you can try and chip away at the foundation he's made."

Paul thought for a moment. Would it be a good enough plan for him? It sounded legitimate enough to me. Then again, Paul would consider me as one of the lower Fallens in our society. _Stuck up-_ Before I could finish my thought, Paul was speaking again. "It sounds like it could work. But I doubt it will be enough to stop him."

I was surprised that Paul even bothered to recognize Bertha's plan, but he was unpredictable. The woman nodded and told him, "We know just the infiltration of his army won't be enough. While you're doing the damage on the inside, we'll still be working on the outside to build up our own forces. Then, we'll see where it goes from there."

I wanted to run over there and hug Bertha for her genius plan, but I didn't want to just yet. Paul had to agree to all of the plan, and without him, it was pointless. He looked at me and asked, "Question, why doesn't he join Kiba's army?"

It felt like a punch in the stomach, and I didn't like to think about the betrayal I had faced against my own friend. Bertha saved me the trouble of explaining my predicament. "They used to know each other before Kiba started this world domination plan. He isn't able to go on the inside."

If I could have gone and joined Kiba's army in order to stop him from this insane plan of his, I would have. But he knew I was against him, and that I would never stoop down to his level. Bertha held out her hand to Paul and asked, "So, are you going to help us?" Paul stared at her outstretched hand, then took it. "I'll help. Where do I find him?"

_Paul_

The Caretaker woman and the Fallen gave me directions to where I would most likely find the Messenger angel that I was looking for. Normally, I wouldn't have taken this kind of job, seeing as this wasn't my problem. But I had never trusted Messengers from the start, and I wasn't about to let one of them reshape the world; whether it was for the better or worse.

A world made in the image of a Messenger, made me cringe and left a sick taste in my mouth. If this Kiba succeeded in his world, then the madness would be unfathomable. At least, from the descriptions of him I've heard of so far. He did sound like a threat and dangerous being, so I made a note to watch myself around him.

I had to make my faith in him sound believable, which shouldn't be all that difficult. Kiba had never seen me or heard of me as far as I knew. I found the place that the Caretaker told me about, and knocked on the metal door. According to them, I should find him in an office towards the back.

The Fallen that was manning to door, opened the little eye window and looked at me. The last time I had been here, which was years ago, there was another Fallen in his place. Something inside my gut told me that something happened to the previous guard.

The Fallen asked me what I wanted. _Since when did this place become so closed off?_ I made my voice sound professional when I said, "I'm here to speak with Kiba. It's….Highly important." The Fallen raised an eyebrow, then slid his little window shut and opened the metal door. "Make it quick. I'm not supposed to let anyone see Kiba unless he commends it. But since you made it sound so urgent, I'll let it slide," he said, pointing me down a hallway towards the back.

I thanked him, and stepped inside. This place, which had once been a sociable place for Fallens, now had an entirely new look. There was no laughter like I remembered. The Fallens who were there, looked ravenous and ready to fight. _These must be some of Kiba's recruits. He's not playing around, is he?_

They glared at me with their animal-like eyes, and they watched as I made my way towards Kiba's office. I found the door, and knocked twice. It unlocked and slowly opened. A young Fallen who didn't fit the description I was given, opened the door. "Who's there?"

Behind him, I saw the Messenger angel sitting behind a desk. He raised his head up to look at me, and I was suddenly overcome with nervousness. I had never felt this kind of intimidation from any being. I remembered that the Fallen who opened the door, was still waiting for my response.

"I'm here to ask Kiba for the recruitment to his army of Fallens." Kiba raised a brow from behind his desk, then smirked. _He thinks that he's got another. But that's what he thinks._ Kiba stood up from his desk and said, "Tristan, let him in." The young Fallen did as the Messenger told him to, and allowed me entrance into the office. Kiba laughed and told me, "This is Tristan. He's the one who shall be leading my army, and you as well if you truly want to join."

I looked back at the young Fallen, disgusted that I would even have to pretend to listen to this inexperienced being. I could see why Kiba chose him though; this Fallen was easy to manipulate. While Kiba would sit back behind his chair, he had this Fallen doing all his work, leading his army and causing chaos.

Kiba's eye narrowed at me and he said, "I don't doubt that you do want to join my army. If you were against me, I'm sure this would be below you. But I do want to see your combat skills." I looked at the Fallen who was sitting down in a chair, expecting this to be my competition.

Kiba laughed and said, "No, no. It won't be him you'll go up against. It will be me." I was taken aback. The Caretaker and Fallen didn't mention anything about this, but perhaps they didn't know he would want me to fight him. I felt my body already prepping for my upcoming fight. What should I expect from the Messenger?

I knew that his kind were trained in the most lethal and relentless form of combat, one that was much more powerful than any Fallen knew. I was highly skilled on my own, but I doubted that I could match what he knew. Kiba looked around the room and said, "This space will not do. If we are to spar, then we will need more adequate room."

I nodded in agreement, and he led me and his Fallen up to the roof of the building. Night had already arrived, giving us enough cover from any wandering eyes that might have been walking around the street below. The Messenger struck at me with speed that I wasn't prepared for.

I dodged his attack just in time, but he had succeeded in knocking me off balance. While I was trying to recover, he sweep me out from under my feet with a low-kick. I fell on my side and quickly scrambled back up to my feet. Now that I was accustomed with his speed, I was able to dodge more easily, but he was still landing heavy hits to me.

I unfolded my wings, taking the fight into the air, where I was more in my element. He did the same, and when I looked down, it was like a missile shooting past me. Kiba climbed higher into the air than I was, then whipped his massive wings in the air, sending sharp-edged feathers shooting at me like knives.

I dodged them, but several caught my leg and side. I hadn't even landed a hit on him, and was getting beaten down like a pathetic dog. Unable to take anymore of this humiliation, I flew up at him and slashed him with my own wings. I felt the razor sharp feathers slice through the skin of his arm and abdomen.

He shrieked, not expecting me to land a hit. When I got a look at the wound I inflicted, it looked like I had sliced him with a knife, but it was already healing up. The wound I gave him, seemed to have angered the Messenger. _He's at that point where he thinks he can't be hurt._

Kiba's hands wrapped around my throat, and he flew down towards the roof, slamming me into concrete top of the building. My back arched, and I bit back a scream of pain. Finding the strength I needed, I brought my feet up and kicked him away from me, then slashed him again with my wings.

The fight seemed to pause, both of us standing about ten feet away from the other. Blood pouring from wounds, and sweat dripping from our foreheads. He panted and said, "I haven't had a Fallen give me this much fight before. It's really a nice change of pace."

And I had never had so much resistance handed back to me. I didn't like the way it felt either; it made me feel weak, and I knew how strong I was. This Messenger had some serious power, and I had underestimated how much. But I knew, that he had the ability to kill me, and it scared me when I realized how much he had been holding back.

Kiba straightened up and said, "Seeing the fighting skills you possess, I think I fitting place in my army for you, would be the second-in-command. If something were to happen to Tristan, you would take over from there." His Fallen didn't look impressed that I would be the one to take his position if he were unable to fight, but it didn't bother me.

This was what the Caretaker and that Fallen were looking for, and I had succeeded in making it into Kiba's army. "I'd be more than happy to take that spot," I said, trying to keep my voice flat, despite the pain I was in. Kiba laughed, and it sent chills down my spine.

"Very good. You never did tell me your name, Fallen." I held my bleeding arm and told him, "Paul." Kiba smiled and nodded. The wounds on his body were almost gone now, while mine were still pouring blood. "Well, Paul, I suggest you go and heal up. I can't have my second-in-command unfit for battle."

The Messenger and his Fallen left the room, leaving me by myself. I had to go back and report to the Caretaker about my success, and that would be the last time I would speak with them. From here on out, I was a pawn to this Messenger, and there would be eyes on me at all times.

_Kiba_

That Fallen had put up a good fight, and I was sure he could have done better. But by his facial expression most of the time, he was unprepared for the skills I possessed. _Most of them are like that._ I returned to my office, Tristan right behind me, and sat back down in my chair.

"Are you sure you don't need somebody to look at your wounds?" my underling asked. I looked at the injuries had obtained in my fight; they were virtually gone now. "No, I am fine. You must remember, Tristan, that I heal much quicker than you Fallens. Paul will probably be out of action for a week, while I'll be good as new by morning." _One of the many perks of being a Messenger._

Tristan nodded his head and told me, "I know. But at times I forget about that…That Fallen. There's something I don't trust about him." I leaned back in my chair, and looked up at the ceiling. There had been something different about him that I picked up when he first came into my office.

I just couldn't place it. _I'm going to have to keep a watchful eye on him._ The fact that such a strong Fallen randomly appeared, asking to join my army, sent up a red flag. _Things like this, just don't happen overnight._

* * *

><p>it has been a really long time since i uploaded this story (i've been deadlocked with ideas and i actually forgot about it o.o) so, thank you to all that have been patient with me. it was bugging me today that i haven't uploaded in about two months, so i decided to put my mind to rest and upload. so, read, review, and other things. ~Copperpelt~<p> 


	22. Cut Throat

_Masomi_

I sat at the table in Bertha's house while she stood over at the sink and washed dishes. Last night had been a success. Paul had gotten into Kiba's army, which was what we were hoping for all along. But he took quite a decent beating getting in. He showed up late at night, cut up and bloodied.

Bertha and I had been asleep when he came busting up into her home. Both of us freaked out, not knowing what was going on until we turned the lights on and saw the tattered figure that was Paul. He could hardly walk, much less stand, and I wondered how he had the energy to get back here.

He turned down Bertha's treatment, but the Caretaker forced him to allow her to at least clean his wounds. While she was wiping away the blood and dirt, Paul explained to us that Kiba wanted to see how strong he was in order to determine if he was material for his army.

I stayed quiet as he spoke, but kept my eyes fixed on some of the still-bleeding gashes. One of Paul's wings was twisted in a painful looking position. He would heal so much quicker if he let Bertha do her job, but there's no fixing stubborn. Now, he was upstairs and resting in one of the guest rooms.

Bertha and I both knew he wouldn't be staying here much longer. He was one of Kiba's Fallens now, and he would have to be with them to prove who he was loyal to. Being seen with us, could spell bad news all around. I suddenly asked Bertha, "How bad do you think this war is going to get?"

She stopped scrubbing a plate and stared down at the sink full of bubbles and dish water. "I'm guessing pretty bad. I don't know. I could be wrong and things might die down before they ever get started." But Bertha and I knew better than that. It would be a bloodbath when Kiba felt that his army was ready to start their assault.

Bertha placed the last dish on a towel so it could dry, then she turned to a cabinet and pulled out a glass. She then filled it with water and said, "I'm going to take this up to Paul." I nodded as she walked by and up the stairs to give Paul the glass of water. While she was still up there, I stood up and yelled up to Bertha, "I'm going out."

I slipped my shoes on and walked out the door. Before I closed it, I heard her yell back, "Wait! Where are you going?" I went ahead and shut the door without answering her. I knew I'd pay for it when I got back. Bertha was not one you should ignore. I looked up at our gray sky, trying to figure where the sun might be if we could see it.

I guess somewhere just above the buildings, but not quite at its highest point. I walked down the sidewalk, going past people who were oblivious as to what was going on. At a newsstand, a little kid was sitting next to the newspapers and reading the business section.

Two people, who I figured were his parents, paid for something. But I stopped and when I looked at the little kid, I realized he wasn't just a kid. He was a Fallen. Maybe about thirteen or fourteen; not so much a little kid. The two people who had been paying for a magazine, were human.

They couldn't be his parents. But when the woman said, "Come on, Thatch. We're leaving." The kid looked up and folded the business section of the paper and put it back with the newspapers. _Adopted. _I had seen it on several occasions. Fallens who Fell to Earth so young that they were unable to take care of themselves and got put into the human foster care system.

This kid was one of those poor and unfortunate Fallens. The guy at the newsstand asked me, "You gunna buy something or are ya gunna stand there all day?" I took my attention from the Fallen and said, "Oh. I'm sorry." I started on my way again, leaving the newsstand behind.

Something caught my eye. I stopped and saw two Fallens ganging up on another one. I heard one of them saying, "You don't believe that Kiba will bring anything good to you?" The other one snapped, "You're right about that then, but only if you don't follow him. He won't hurt you if you're on his side."

The Fallen they were hovering over was hunkered down in the corner of where two buildings met. They were hidden from the eyes of people, and only the keen eyesight of a Fallen could have spotted them. I ran towards them and shouted, "Hey! Leave em alone!" The two Fallens turned around and glared at me.

"And who do you think you are?" one of them asked. While they were distracted, their victim got up and hightailed it out of there. I told them, "It doesn't matter who I think I am. What matters is that you leave your own kind alone." The two laughed at my statement.

Then the smaller Fallen asked, "And what will you do?" They started to walk my way, and with each step they took forward, I took one back. This continued until I was running, and they were chasing after me. I ran back onto the sidewalk and pushed past people that were in my way.

They were gaining on me, and willed myself invisible to the people that were walking, then unfolded my wings and took off. The two Fallens could still see me though, and they did the same and took off after me. I beat my black wings in the air as I tried to put distance between us, flying between buildings and doing anything I could to shake them. Nothing seemed to be working.

One of them had caught up with me and was flying right above me. He smirked and slammed a wing down on my back, nearly sending me into the asphalt down below. I regained balance in the air and saw that they were both next to me; one on each side. They both spun in the air at the same time, slamming two powerful wings onto my back.

This time I did fall to the ground and nearly lost the hold of my invisibility. I had grown tired of their games, and when they dove down for me, I unfolded my wings to their full span and turned in the air. The razor-like feathers on my wings cut into their shoulders, chests, and even their necks.

But they didn't cut deep enough to kill them. They tumbled to the ground next to me, blood gushing from their wounds. What had been a chance to have some fun, turned into anger in their eyes. They might not have intended to hurt me badly, but now they did since I landed a good hit on them. _Uh-oh._

One of them jumped behind me and held my hands behind my back. I pulled against him, trying to break free. His buddy was walking towards me and pulled a black dagger out from his shoe. I laughed and said, "You think a knife is going to kill me?" These two were stupider than they looked.

He wore a sadistic grin on his face when he said, "Oh, you think this is a regular knife? Well then, you're in for a bit of a surprise when I cut your throat and you don't heal." He brought the tip of the knife closer to my throat. I didn't know what made that knife so special that it could hurt me, but I didn't want to find out.

I unfolded my wings, causing them to dig into the front of the Fallen behind me. I felt his blood soak onto my feathers and heard him screaming. I then slammed my wing into the side of the Fallen with the knife, causing him to be thrown sideways. I glanced at the one I dug my wings into and nearly lost my breakfast when I saw his wounds.

It looked like somebody had gone at him with a shredder to his chest and stomach. If he recovered from that, then those scars would not be pretty. The one I knocked to the side was trying to catch his breath. By the looks of his side, I had snapped a good many of his ribs.

This was why I didn't like to fight. People thought I didn't fight cause I couldn't or I was a coward. No, I knew what I was capable of. My eyes fell on the knife that was laying behind the Fallen. I snatched it up and slid it under my belt. Between the gasps for air and screams of agony, I could stand to be at the scene any longer.

Their invisibility would wear off eventually, and they would be found either dead or alive. I unfolded my wings and saw the blood dripping off the tips of the black feathers. I then slammed them down, sending myself airborne.

_Kiba_

"What the hell do you mean they were attacked!" I screamed and slammed my hands down on my desk. The Fallen who was telling me this, Logan, flinched back at my outburst. He stuttered, "I-I'm sorry, sir. B-but we found their bodies laying in the street of the abandoned business district of town."

I growled and ran a hand through my hair. They were two of my top fighters, and they had been killed. I wanted to know what Fallen was strong enough to take them down. Logan gulped and said, "They're bringing in the bodies downstairs and in the basement now if you want to see the damage."

I stood up from my chair, almost making it topple backwards. I stomped past Logan, who shut his eyes as if to brace himself to be hit. He was a coward, but he was good at keeping up with information. So, I guess he was a secretary to me. He followed me down to the basement.

Nobody used it besides me. It was located right underneath the building that housed my office and the old gathering place for Fallens in the city; now turned into a new meeting place for my Fallens. Those who didn't follow me, stayed far away from this place, despite it being the place where every Fallen socialized at.

I saw the two bodies of my Fallens laying on the concrete floor. I knelt down beside Draco, whose ribs and side had been smashed in and obliterated. I looked closely and saw the impression of feathers in his skin. He was hit by a wing, and hard. My attention turned to my other Fallen, Clinton.

I was stunned at the damage that was done to him. Both wings of whoever attack him had gone through his torso, leaving a large hole in his chest. Behind me, Logan said, "The ones who find them said that Draco was missing his dagger when they found him." I turned around and saw the empty boot sheath attached to his leg.

It was empty, just as Logan said. Now that I knew that my Fallens had been not only killed, but lost their weapons, I was seething with anger. This made me look like a weak leader, and I was nowhere near a weak leader. I was about to order Logan to gather some Fallens to go and try and find the person who killed my soldier, but I stopped.

A scent caught my attention. It was on both of my Fallens, but stronger on Clinton. It was familiar, and grinned evilly when I placed it. _My dear friend, Masomi. I had no clue you were capable of such things._ I stood up and said, "Dispose of their bodies." Logan stared at me with surprise.

"You're not going to send a group of Fallens out to avenge them?" I smiled and said, "I know who did this, and I want to be the one who confronts him. But that day will come soon enough."

_Masomi_

Now I knew how Paul felt when he arrived back at Bertha's last night. I hadn't sustained any injuries, but I was exhausted. Never had I exerted that much energy. _Probably because I never do anything, _I thought as I walked into Bertha's house. She was walking down from upstairs with an empty glass that I recognized as that one she took up the Paul earlier that morning.

"Masomi! You're back! Oh, my. What happened to you?" I forced my heavy legs over to the couch and laid down. My body felt like it melted into the plush cushions. I told her flatly, "I think I got a taste of how things will be when Kiba starts up this war." She stared at me then ran into the kitchen, returning with a glass of water for me.

I took it and gulped the cool liquid down. She said, "Now tell me what all happened." I handed her back the empty glass and said, "I saw these two Fallens jumping another one. They were trying to make him give in a join Kiba. I stopped them and they turned on me and chased me through the city. We got into a pretty nasty fight, and I think I ended up killing them both."

A sudden wave of guilt washed over me. I didn't like having somebody's blood on my hands. Bertha stared at me and said, "You? Get into a fight and kill somebody?" I nodded and snapped at her, "I didn't want to!" Bertha knew how I was when it came down to fighting.

I hated it, but only did when I had no other choice. It was either fight back, or be killed. And knowing that by fighting, I caused the death of somebody, only made things worse on my conscience. She said gently, "I know. Continue, Masomi."

I nodded and pulled the dagger out of my shoe and said, "One of them pulled this out. They didn't look that smart, but even they should have known that a knife wouldn't kill me. But he said that there was something about this knife that would." Bertha took it from my hand and examined it. We both looked up and saw Paul walking down the stairs.

He held on tightly to his injured shoulder and asked, "What's with all the talking going on?" Bertha told him, "Masomi ran into some trouble with some of Kiba's Fallens and was telling me what happened. Hey, Paul, maybe you know something about this." She extended the knife out to him.

He raised an eyebrow and took it from her. Paul ran a finger down the side of the blade and said, "I think…I think this is made from angel wing." He pointed out the texture of the blade, and it looked a lot like feathers. And it wasn't a design. If it was, then you wouldn't have to look so closely.

I asked, "Why in the world did that Fallen have this. More importantly, how did he get his hands on it?" Bertha shook her head to let me know that she had no clue. Paul continued to stare at it then said, "I think Kiba's little puppet had something like this. A weapon made from this material. In fact, I think I saw something like this on all of Kiba's Fallens when I went there."

He handed the knife back to Bertha, who handed it back to me. I stared at my reflection in the black, shiny angel wing blade. I said, "Looks like Kiba's bringing something new to the fight."

* * *

><p>back on this story. now that i have time with being out of school, i can try and finish this. :) about time to. there's about to be a year skip next chapter. I've been meaning to put one in, but kept writing to where i had to continue into another chapter. well, read, review, and other things. ~Copperpelt~<p> 


	23. Written In Black And White

_Kiba_

_4 Years Later….._

My army's numbers had grown drastically throughout the last few years. Over half the city supported and followed me. The rest of the city's Fallens had yet to see the light and join my side. My underling, Tristan, had also grown to be a fierce opponent and proved to be useful.

The only one that stood on the same level as him, was Paul. But overall, I was proud of my Fallens, and more than gracious for their weak minds. I smiled and picked up the newspaper that was brought into my office by Logan. "Let's see what the humans have to say now," I mused and flipped through the thin pages.

There was a report on a bloody killing that took place, and I slammed the paper down. "What is this!" I shouted. Logan craned his neck and read the headline. He said sheepishly, "It seems like one of your Fallens got into a fight and didn't clean up the mess."

I growled. The Fallen who was killed, wasn't on my side, but I preferred that they weren't killed. They were possible recruits for my army. Unless they attacked my Fallens, I wanted them left alone. I asked harshly, "Who did this?" Logan was shaking his head when Tristan stepped into the office and said, "It was me."

I stared at him in surprise. "You killed a possible recruit? Tristan, you better have a good reason for having your work plastered all over the mortal's news!" I was furious. The humans didn't have any reason to see my handiwork in black and white.

And I thought I had made it clear to all of my Fallens, that we were to recruit with nonviolent methods. It would increase our chances of gaining numbers, and would keep incidents like this out of the news. Tristan shrugged his shoulders and said, "I don't see why one dead Fallen in the newspaper is a reason to get worked up. We could go ahead with your plans with the numbers we have now. There's no reason to have all of Bay City's population of Fallens in your army."

I couldn't believe the backtalk I was getting out of my underling. He used to never fight back or argue. I left my desk and stood in front of Tristan, looking him dead in the eyes. They showed defiance in them. Perhaps my underling was getting restless and wanted to hurry up and see the fruits of his labor.

But there was still a great deal of waiting. I said sternly, "You don't understand the numbers and power we face in the Realm, Tristan. We need as many as we can get. You're dismissed." The Fallen turned on his heel and left the office.

_Tristan_

I stormed outside of the headquarters and unfolded my wings, slamming them against the brick walls out of anger. Why couldn't he see that we were ready to take on the Realm? "Why!" I shouted and hit the wall once more. I wanted to go back home, to the place that I had been shunned from when I was young.

I could care less about Kiba's perfect world. I had been training and training for years to become stronger and more powerful, and this was the thanks I got. To be scolded for killing a Fallen that would never help us reach our goal. I stretched my wings and slammed them against the air, sending me upward to the sky. I landed on the roof that Kiba and Paul fought at four years ago.

"Paul," I growled. His name tasted like trash in my mouth. Even though I was Kiba's top Fallen, I couldn't help but feel that he had been favoring Paul more recently. My enhanced eyes scanned around the city. The place only disgusted me more and more each day.

I found two Fallens walking along the sidewalk. They weren't on Kiba's side, and every fiber of my being told me to kill them. If they weren't on his side now, why on Earth would they join him in the future? I examined the surrounding area.

There weren't any people around for a couple of blocks. _I could kill them without being seen._ These two were nothing more than a slowdown in our plans. But I thought about Kiba. He was already steaming over my last stunt, and I had learned quickly by watching him punish others, to not anger him too much.

If I wasn't his top Fallen, he probably would have knocked me down back there. I let the two keep on their way. "Calm down, bird boy. I can see fumes around your head." I turned around and saw Mallory landing on the roof. She folded her wings away and approached me.

"What do you want?" I asked curtly. She was low ranking amongst Kiba's army, and not very loyal to anyone. Not even herself. She smiled menacingly and said, "Word is already spreading about how Kiba snapped on his precious pet."

Her latest hairstyle was choppy and extremely short, making her look more like a young boy than the witch she was. "I'm not his pet, you skank!" She pretended to act scared and laughed. A short lock of her platinum blonde hair fell out of place, which she quickly fixed. "Such harsh words," she said with a smile.

I gritted my teeth and turned away from her. She wasn't worth my time. Her smile vanished and she stepped closer to me, placing a delicate hand on my shoulder. "Did Kiba actually get to you that badly?" she asked. I had never seen Mallory actually give a crap about anyone except herself, so I wasn't sure if she was being genuine or putting on another act.

"If you really want to know, yes. But it wasn't his outburst. It's the fact that we can go to war with the Realm, and he is delaying it!" Mallory unfolded her wings and jumped into the air, gracefully floating down and sitting on the roof's door entrance.

"I understand what you're saying, Tristan." She then slid down and started to walk around me. Her voice was smooth when she spoke. "You are surpassing Kiba. You see the error in his so-called flawless plan. And if you have that ability, then you deserve to lead his army."

I had lost myself in the silkiness of her words, but I heard what she was saying. Yes. I was able to see and understand Kiba's plan better than he could! Mallory was right in front of my face, her body nothing more than a hair away from mine.

"You could do it, you know. Challenge Kiba and take over his Fallens. Then, the war would proceed much quicker. I've always seen the potential leader in you, Tristan." She leaned forward and kissed my lips. When she backed away, she said devilishly, "Just a little motivation for you in case you go through with it."

Mallory turned around and took off into the sky. I stood there in a daze for a moment, then shook myself back awake. "Disgusting," I said and wiped my mouth on my shirt sleeve. But she did have a point. I could take down Kiba. He was, in fact, the one who trained me and taught me how to fight. It would be like fighting the mirror image of himself. I unfolded my wings and shouted into the air, "Kiba!"

_Kiba_

I heard Tristan shout my name and growled. _What has he done this time?_ The Fallens inside the headquarters quieted down, and I was able to hear Tristan's yelling more clearly. That wasn't a cry for help. "I'll take care of this," I said coldly and pushed past Logan.

I stepped outside of the headquarters and flew up to the roof. Tristan was standing there, black wings maxed out to their full span. I landed on the roof and looked at him. "Do you mind telling me what the hell is going on in your head right now, Tristan?"

He pulled the angel wing dagger from his boot, cried out and charged at me. Before he even got halfway to me, I snapped my wings out, creating a gust that knocked his thin body back. He tumbled on the surface of the roof, losing his hold on the dagger.

"Little pest. You really had the gall to attack me?" I hissed. Tristan jumped up to his feet and said, "Not only attack, but take over." I rolled my eyes, surprised that it took this long for him to show me any kind of defiance. I told him, "Alright, I'll give you your chance to take over."

I wasn't going to kill him, but I would injure him enough to remind him of his place. My other Fallens had emerged from the buildings and were floating around in the air, eager to watch our battle. I could tell they all had willed themselves invisible to keep wandering eyes from spotting them. Tristan ran at me again, picking up the dagger when he got near it.

I stood there until he was closer, and slapped him away with my wing. He was persistent, and got up and charged again. I grabbed his wrist, tightening my grip until he cried out and dropped the dagger, and then to his knees.

From there, I slammed my foot down on his chest and pinned him down. Whispers from my Fallens made something close to the sound of wind around me, and I smiled. I brought the end of my wing up to his throat, and enjoyed watching his eyes grow wide with fear as my razor-like feathers threatened to slice him open.

I asked calmly, "Now, Tristan, what has provoked you into rebelling against me?" I thought back to how I had Masomi pinned down like this, and it brought a smile to my face. Tristan gasped for air and said, "You were taking too long, and I wanted to get this war over with."

I shook my head. "Tsk, tsk, tsk. I would have never thought you would have been foolish enough to think like that. I've told you, and the rest of the Fallens, that this plan isn't something that will go into effect over night." I lifted my foot from his chest, and watched as he rolled over and coughed.

I told him, "Now, I'm going to pretend like your little stunt here didn't happen. Understood?" He was still coughing when he nodded. Tristan stood up to his feet, wings hanging limply by his sides. I turned to walk away and go back to my office, when he spoke.

His words were breathless. "You said you needed more Fallens to start this war?" I turned around and narrowed my eyes. "What are you getting at, Tristan?" He picked his wings back up from his sides and said, "I'll get you more Fallens if it means speeding up the war. But I'll need some of them to take with me as backup."

He motioned to my army that was floating around and perched in windows. They looked at one another in confusion. This would give me a chance to get Tristan out of my hair for a while. I turned to him and said, "Permission granted."

* * *

><p>aye. i needed a year jump in there. -.- badly. i need to hurry and get to the present day, so sorry if the next few chapters are rushed. we have seven more years until we reach the time of the Clan Wars, so bear with me. read, review, and other things. ~Copperpelt~<p> 


	24. The Pet

_Kiba_

I decided to use Tristan's idea as a means to teach him a lesson for trying to stand up to me. He needed to be reminded that I was in charge, not him. I was back in my office, while he was out and gathering the Fallens that he wanted to take with him. He then walked into my office, clutching his bandaged arm.

I had gone easy on him when he decided to defy me, and yet, I had still nearly beaten him to a pulp. I was quite disappointed with how he stood up against me in battle. Surely he could do better, but I was beginning to wonder.

Then again, I was much strong than most of my recruited Fallens. Tristan knelt down in front of the desk; after our fight, he had been showing more respect towards me. "I've gathered the Fallens that I wish to take with me." I stood up, dragging my fingers along the smooth surface of my desk. "No, I do believe that you have overlooked one that you need to take with you," I said calmly.

Tristan raised his head and looked up at me. He wasn't sure about my words. "Who have I overlooked, sir?" he asked as he stood up on his feet. I leaned against my desk and said, "Paul. I know you haven't chosen him to go with you."

Tristan narrowed his eyes at me. "Why would I take him anyway?" I pushed myself from my desk and got right up in Tristan's face. I said coldly, "You'll take him because I want you to, and you will. Understand, Tristan?" He was tensed up, and I could see the distain in his eyes.

His hatred of Paul was of no secret to me, so it would only make sense that he didn't pick the Fallen to join him. I grinned. "Is there a problem with this, Tristan?" My underling backed away from me and said, "No, sir. I will go and inform Paul that he will be joining me." Tristan turned and left my office.

_Tristan_

It was taking all of my self-control to not lash out and punch the wall. This was Kiba's way of getting back at me, it had to be. I hated Paul and everything about him, and Kiba knew about it. I asked a Fallen that walked by me, "Have you seen Paul?"

The Fallen pointed down the hall and said, "In there." I thanked him and stepped into the main gathering area of the headquarters. Paul was sitting over at the bar, stirring a glass of ice water with his index finger. I didn't want that Fallen to go with me. _But if I don't take him, then Kiba will say I'm defying him again. That's the last thing I need._

I sucked up my pride and walked over to the bar, taking a seat on the stool next to Paul. The Fallen glanced at me for a second, then back at his water. "What do you want, Pet?" I clenched my teeth. Was that really how most of the others saw me? As Kiba's pet?

I held back the insult that was hanging at the edge of my lips, and let out a fake laugh instead. "Ha, that's funny, Paul. I just came over here to tell you that you'll be coming with me to recruit more Fallens for Kiba." He turned on the stool to face me.

"Save me the crap. I know you wouldn't want me to go personally. Kiba's making you take me, isn't he?" I nodded. Paul slid off of the stool and said, "Well, unlike you, I'm not going to go against the leader's orders. Give me a call when it's time to head out."

The Fallen walked off. I clenched my hand into a fist, my nails digging into the palm of my hand. Of all the things Kiba could have done to me, he had picked the one torture that would get to me. Hopefully, this mission would show the others that I wasn't Kiba's little 'pet' like they thought I was.

_Masomi_

There hadn't been much word from Paul since we sent him into Kiba's army. He used to be able to report news back to us every couple of weeks, but Bertha and I hadn't heard from him in months. Even though I didn't like Paul personally, I was worried about him.

What if Kiba had seen through our plan and killed our only man on the inside? Then what would we do? There was nobody else left in the city that we could turn to. Either they were all on Kiba's side, or they were too scared to stand up to him.

Bertha walked into the living room carrying a tray with hot tea on it. She set it down on the coffee table and said, "Help yourself…..Masomi, is something bothering you? I haven't seen you this deep in thought before. It's kind of troublesome for me to see." I smiled at her, enjoying that sense of humor that Bertha carried with her. "I'm fine, Bertha. Just thinking about some stuff."

I leaned forward and took one of the cups of tea as a means to show her that I truly was fine. I took a drink of the tea, and spit it back into the cup. "Ow! Hot! Hot!" Bertha shook her head in shame. "I thought you would have learned by now," she said and slowly sipped on the scalding tea.

Somebody outside knocked on the door. Bertha and I turned at the same time to look at it. She got up and unlocked the latch, and opened the door. A cloaked figure stood outside, then stepped inside. He went over to the windows and shut the blinds and curtains.

I asked, "May we help you?" His face was hidden, and I couldn't tell who it was. This was one thing I worried about when it came to Bertha. She would let anyone in her home, and I kept expecting her to get robbed one day. But it hadn't happened yet.

When all of the windows were blocked out, and the doors locked back, the figure removed the hood of his cloak. It was Paul that was hiding under there. Bertha smiled and said, "It's good to see you again. We were wondering what happened to you. Do you want something to eat or drink?"

Paul turned down his offer. "I'm sorry I haven't gotten back to you in a while. There haven't been many chances for me to get away, and when I do have them, I have to make sure nobody is around to see where I'm going."

Now I knew why he was cloaked and blocking all the windows. With Kiba's puppets everywhere, he had to be on guard and cautious. One slip up could mean that our plan was all for nothing. I leaned forward and said, "So, anything knew to let us in on?"

I was eager to know more information about what my old 'friend' had been up to. With each report that Paul gave us, I was only able to feel more shocked at how Kiba was slipping into madness so quickly. It pained me to know that my friend was going into a state of no return.

There had been a time that I thought I had a chance to pull Kiba out of his insanity, but lately, that was looking impossible. Paul crossed his arms over his chest and said, "I wanted to let you guys know that Kiba's allowed Tristan to take Fallens out of the city and go elsewhere to recruit more for the army, and that I got drafted into the group. It may be a while before I'm back here and able to tell you anything."

Was it possible that Kiba did know about our plan, and that this was his way of getting Paul out of the way so he wouldn't have a spy on his shoulder anymore? No. If Kiba truly did know, he would have killed Paul long before this.

Bertha set her tea down and told Paul, "Don't worry. You continue to pretend to be on Kiba's side and get back to us whenever you can." Paul nodded and put his cloak back on. "I just wanted to let you two know before I left tomorrow," he said and walked out of the house.

I had to admit, the several years that we had been around Paul, I had gotten past the arrogance that surrounded him. He actually wasn't a bad guy once I got to know him. Although, there were still times that I wanted to slap that dead 'I'm better that all of you' look on his face.

Bertha opened up the blinds that Paul had closed and said, "I hope things go smoothly for him." I stretched out on the couch and said, "I do too, Bertha. I do too."

_Paul_

I slipped back into the headquarters without being spotted. Well, almost. Tristan popped up out of nowhere and asked, "Where have you been?" His voice wasn't very welcoming. Then again, it had never been welcoming towards me.

"Out," I told him and walked towards my living quarters. Most of the Fallens had a place to stay here. It had taken a year or so to get all of the junk cleaned out from the upstairs part of the building, but now that it had been, there were almost enough rooms for everyone to have their own.

A few had to share, but that was about it. Tristan ran up behind me, and out of a reflex, I turned around and pinned him against the wall. "What do you think you were about to do, Pet?" I hissed. He tried to pry my arm from his throat, but it didn't budge.

_He's pathetic, _I thought to myself. It was ridiculous how he was Kiba's top Fallen, when he couldn't even hold his own against most of the people in this building. _I could do a way better job of running things than him._

Tristan rubbed his throat and said, "I wasn't trying to jump you. I was trying to set up a truce between me and you." I raised an eyebrow. "A truce?" He nodded and let out a cough as he regained oxygen in his lungs. "It's clear me and you don't get along. So, to keep the throat cutting to a minimum, how about you stay out of my way, and I stay out of your's?"

I would have preferred if he only had to stay out of my way. There was no reason for me to stay out of his. He wasn't a threat to me. He needed to be the one who did the staying out of the way. But this looked like as good as the deal was going to get.

"Fine by me. How about we start now, Pet?" He narrowed his eyes at me. I loved his reaction to when I called him Pet. His eyes showed me how much he hated it. Tristan said, "Sounds good to me. Remember, we head out tomorrow at dawn."

He glared at me as he walked by. I shook my head and walked back to my room. _That kid is such a damn piece of work._ I stepped into my room, making sure that no bugs had been placed. Since I started to 'work' for Kiba, I had allowed paranoia to take over in case he did have any suspicions as to whether I was truly loyal to him; and I wasn't.

But I had apparently been giving a convincing performance, because I still had no bugs placed in my room. I stretched out on my bed and started to speculate what the next few days would bring.

* * *

><p>i needed a change of pace from my other story, so i decided to upload this one today. ^^ it'll come together eventually. to the readers of this story, check out my poll on my profile if you haven't. read, review, and other things. ~Copperpelt~<p> 


End file.
